Final Fantasy Eight: Doomsday Part I
by Ally Todd
Summary: The first part of a trilogy. While the whirling dervish of destruction surrounding Squall, Rinoa, Quistis, Zell, Selphie and Irvine tears everything apart will they be able to keep it together, or do they need help? Contains strong bloody violence, language, moderate sexual references, scens of torture and a horror theme.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Assault**

The Galbadia Hotel was one of the more opulent hotels in Deling City, the capital of the Republic of Galbadia and it frequently catered to the rich, famous and powerful. This was the primary reason that a five man team armed with handguns and pump action shotguns had stormed in and taken the staff and guests hostage. The men were members of the TFM (Timber Freedom Militia) a notoriously violent and committed paramilitary group that's main agenda was the freedom of Timber, a small sovereign nation in the southern part of the continent that had been ruled by Galbadia for the last twenty one years. They issued a list of demands that were hardly unpredictable, mainly large amounts of money, the release of their imprisoned fellows from various jails in Galbadia and Timber and transport out of Deling City. The police did not have the power to grant these demands and they decided to see if the terrorists were bluffing about killing hostages. With hindsight this was a bad move as there was a short amount of gun fire and a hostage's body was dumped outside the hotel.

The abrupt change in terms meant that the siege needed to be resolved through the use of violence. Ordinarily, the Dragon Squadron, the army's elite counter-terrorist and hostage release operatives would handle the job but President Caraway had requested the services of SeeD Special Forces from the mercenary enclave of Balamb Garden resolve the siege, backed up by the Dragon Squadron. The street had been cordoned off and the only people within sight of the hotel were specialist firearms police officers, but the terrorists were not fools and were keeping their heads down. A bank a few hundred metres down the road had been commandeered by the police and negotiators who had come perilously close to forcibly ejecting the small army of journalists and reporters that had been alerted by the unexpected sounds of gun fire in a busy public place. A pair of Black Hawk helicopters announced the arrival of the SeeD teams who entered the bank through a rear exit in order to preserve their anonymity and not get their faces in the papers.

"I appreciate your presence," A senior police officer said to SeeD Commander Squall Leonhart and Balamb Garden Chairman Cid Kramer. "But I'm confident that we'll be able to resolve this peacefully and you'll have had a wasted journey."

"Of course officer," Cid smiled thinly. "But you'll accommodate us all the same in case we're needed. We'll need some space to work if you'd please."

The police officer didn't look like he pleased but he gestured to a number of unoccupied trestle tables all the same. The SeeD members immediately dumped their rucksacks on the floor and started pulling out blueprints and cardboard mock ups of the hotels. Their designated sniper Irvine Kinneas quickly assembled an L96 "Artic Warfare" sniper rifle and headed off to get eyes on the hotel from the roof of the restaurant directly across the street. Squall and Cid meanwhile tried to find out what the police knew about the hostage takers. It transpired they were all veterans in the TFM with colourful pasts and were exactly the types that were fanatical enough to kill all the hostages, not to mention themselves if their demands were not meant.

"What do we know about weapons?" Squall asked as he studied the criminal records in a manila folder.

"Two pistols and one pump action confirmed." One of the police officers informed him curtly. "It's also possible that they'll have explosives. They've all got form for bombings."

"Have they given you any demands yet?" Cid enquired. "I've often found it's easier to predict their reaction if we know how much is at stake."

"It's the usual set of demands." The officer replied. "They want exorbitant sums of money, release of prisoners and so forth. They also want a helicopter to take them to the airport and a plane, presumably to take them back to Timber."

"No one's actually thought of giving them a helicopter have they?" Squall asked, hoping that the police might have some collective intelligence.

"We do prefer negotiation to sending your bloodhounds in to shoot the place up." One of the officers told him.

"It's a little more sophisticated than that." Squall replied evenly. "But getting back to my original question; I do hope no-one's brought up the possibility of giving them a helicopter."

"That's an absolute last resort." The policeman said. "We'll only do that if all other possibilities, up to and including a full armed assault are exhausted."

"What so you can shoot them down the minute they're fifty feet off the ground?" Squall snorted. "You and I both know that they'll take the hostages with them as an insurance policy or a human shield, possibly both. You're gambling with a lot of lives. These people are professionals, but if you hand control over to us and they'll be dead professionals in minutes, possibly seconds."

"I'm hoping to avoid a bloodbath." The police officer argued, unwilling to be knocked off his pedestal by a man half his age. "I'd rather have our gun toting friends in jail than body bags."

"Well you're still in charge so God help us," Squall retorted. "But maybe they'll cave to a charm offensive."

"This is no time for facetiousness Commander," The officer spluttered, outraged. "I'm in charge until I hand over control, or my superiors tell me to. You can rest assured it'll be the latter. I'm not keen on a full scale fire fight in a built up area."

"Well why you're trying out a tea and sympathy approach we'll draw up a deliberate plan of action." Squall said before crossing over to his second in command Quistis Trepe who was poring over some blueprints. "What do we know?"

"The building was built back when security wasn't a major concern." Quistis said without looking up. "However after the job on the Dollet embassy they decided to upgrade their security, especially with their clientele. The roof is lined with steel plates and the rooms are very secure. We'll definitely have to go with explosive entry and that'll have to be P for plenty. The element of surprise is everything."

"Well the terrorists will be expecting the Dragon Squadron as a worst case scenario so provided old flatfoot over there doesn't let them know we're here they'll never see us coming." Squall sat down and kneaded his forehead. "I'll have to put my thinking cap on."

It was the early evening when the negotiator decided to have another go at talking the terrorists down though Squall privately though that all hope was lost. They'd already killed one hostage so they'd have to be complete idiots to think that they'd be allowed to go free.

"Hello, I'm the police negotiator." The negotiator said on the phone. "My name is Andrew. I just want to know if there's anything I can do for you?"

"I could murder a pizza!" The terrorist leader bellowed cheerfully before following it up with a stereotypical "evil mastermind" laugh.

"That might be possible to arrange," The negotiator said diplomatically. "But we need to talk about serious matters as well."

"What like toppings?" The terrorist laughed. "I'm a four seasons, spicy chicken kind of guy myself. What say you?"

"Whatever you're trying to achieve, this not the way." The negotiator said. "Please come out with your hands up and we can discuss your demands in a rational manner. This isn't going to work."

"And suddenly I'm so painfully bored." The terrorist sighed. "What about my helicopter? Did you look into it?"

"Yes I did but I'm afraid it'll take some time." The negotiator replied. "Authority from a helicopter has got to come from the very top."

"Sorry that's not good enough." The terrorist leader said. "Don't even try to fob me off about it taking time to get a helicopter because the place is buzzing with them. Maybe you should let me hurry things up." There was silence that was followed by two distant sounds, the cocking of a pistol and then a shot. Then the terrorist hung up.

"Was it a bluff?" The senior policeman asked a man who was wearing headphones and had a pensive look on his face.

"There was a shot, the sound of someone falling." The man replied. "I think he did it."

"Of course he did it!" Squall laughed bitterly. "He's already killed one hostage and now because you've been pussy footing around he's gone and slotted another. I'm curious; do you have a plan that isn't failure of various degrees?"

"We don't know for sure anyone else has been killed." The policeman replied stiffly. "I'm hoping to minimise collateral damage."

"Hand over control and you won't have any." Squall replied before his radio buzzed. He snatched it up. "Irvine anything?"

"There's something happening." Irvine said as he aimed his rifle at the front door of the hotel. He attached a small camera to the side of his weapon. "I'm sending you gun cam images. Hold on."

On the screen of one of the SeeD laptops, the police, soldiers and SeeD members could all clearly see a body being tossed out. Two paramedics rushed forward flanked by two armed policemen. They checked the vitals before rolling the carcass onto a gurney and carrying it towards an ambulance, even though it was fairly obvious that the hostage was the second fatality. The policeman turned to Squall.

"It's over to you guys now."

* * *

When morning broke the SeeD and Dragon Squadron assault team trooped into the bank control, aside from Irvine who had barely moved from his sniper post. Every member of the team were dressed in flameproof black overalls, Kevlar vest, body armour, belt kits, gas masks and balaclavas. They were also armed with a selection of weaponry including axes, knives and flash bang grenades. Most of them carried a Sig Sauer 9mm pistol strapped to their thigh and a few carried sawn off pump action shotguns, used to blast doors open. Everyone was also carrying a high powered MP5 submachine gun, an excellent counter terrorism weapon. Squall nodded at the negotiator, who lifted the phone and dialled the hotel.

"Do you have any good news for me," The terrorist leader enquired lightly. "Or am I going to have to kill some more people?"

"Let's not get excited." The negotiator said. "We couldn't get a helicopter but we've managed to get you alternative transport. A plane has been arranged and we're sending a bus to take you to the airport. Is that sufficient?"

"I suppose that will do." The terrorist said after a tense pause. "I'm warning you, if you try anything I will start shooting and once I'm finished with the hostages I'll come down there, stick my gun up your arse and blow your guts out your wide open trap. Do you understand me?"

"I understand." The negotiator said. "There will be no excitable reaction from our side. Can we expect the same of you?"

"I don't think you have much of a choice." The terrorist said. "If the bus is not outside the hotel by eight on the dot you'll have another five dead hostages on your hands so think carefully if you can live with that." There was a click and the line went dead.

"If we weren't about to kill him I might have to offer him a job." Cid said, dressed in the uniform of a bus driver.

"Does everyone know their jobs?" Squall asked looking around. No one answered except Irvine.

"Can I come down yet?" He asked over the radio. "I'm beginning to get cramp."

"Hold your position Irvine." Squall replied. "We'll need you to take them out of they try to make a break for it. Just provide sniper support for now. If it makes you feel any better you can have first dibs on the hot tub when we get back to Garden."

"With complimentary babes in swimsuits?" Irvine asked, perking up immediately.

"I'm not even going to dignify that with an answer." Squalls aid as he put on his balaclava and gas mask before sliding a magazine into the slot on his weapon. "Let's do this thing."

Two hours later, everyone was in position. The bus was in position to enter the cordoned zone. In addition to Cid who was posing as the driver there was an entire Dragon Squadron team crammed into the luggage compartment, acting as back up to the SeeD teams. SeeD Team Blue, led by Quistis were in position on the roof and they'd enter the building by blowing open the skylights and rappelling down the front of the building. SeeD Team Red, led by Squall would follow the bus in, riding modified land rovers with upright ladders bolted to the roofs. Squall was waiting at the foot of one of the ladders while a recently qualified SeeD Ryan Kemp was halfway up. Squall tapped his radio.

Red One Alpha," He said quietly but urgently. "In position. Please respond." He nodded in satisfaction as he heard his whole team respond. He pulled out a small Maglite and flashed it twice at the roof of the hotel. A few seconds later, a member of Team Blue responded with an identical signal. The bus started to move slowly forwards until it reached the entrance. Squall reached up to Ryan and handed him a frame charge, a flat explosive device that would blow a window in, but posed little danger to hostages. Cid opened the bus door automatically.

"Standby…" Squall murmured tensely as he fingered his weapon. It was comfort thing because even after everything Squall was always a little tense before a job. He knew only too well that jobs like this one rarely went according to plan. "Standby…standby…and go!"

It was at that point a bloody hell broke loose. There were deafening explosions from the roof as Quistis' team blew open the skylights with massive plumes of white smoke while two other members of her team rappelled down to the top floor windows and kicked them in, before tossing flash bang grenades in and then following. The land rovers streaked forwards and Ryan blew the window in before climbing inside, Squall tossing a flash bang grenade ahead of him. The luggage compartment on the bus opened discharging Dragon Squadron troops who took up back up positions. One of the terrorists had been heading for the bus when the assault began. He hesitated momentarily as he saw the Dragon Squadron waiting for him. This was a fatal mistake as Irvine proved why he was known as the best sharpshooter in Garden. He dropped the terrorist with a single shot, picking up a perfect line through all the smoke and marginally controlled mayhem.

"X-Ray down in the reception area." He radioed quickly. "That's one X-Ray down, four to go!"

Squall and Ryan found themselves in an empty room and they immediately headed for the door. It burst open before they reached it to reveal a man carrying a shotgun. Squall threw himself backwards as the man fired. He twisted around on the floor to return fire but the man dived out of the way. Squall stood up but came to a halt when he saw Ryan.

The SeeD man had taken the shotgun blast in the legs, both of which were now spurting blood like a scarlet geyser. Squall wanted to help him but that wasn't how he'd been trained. If he lingered who knew how many of his team mates might get it because he wasn't covering their backs.

"Man down in two Echo!" He radioed as Ryan's struggles grew weaker and weaker. "Man down in two Echo!" He followed the man with the shotgun along the corridor. He ducked a shotgun blast but the man should've looked where he was going as a SeeD member shoulder blocked him before hurling him headfirst down a staircase and finishing him off with a burst of machine gun fire.

"X-Ray down, stairs two," The SeeD radioed and Squall smiled as he recognised the voice. Despite her diminutive stature and childlike innocent façade he knew that Selphie Tilmitt was a cheerfully violent maniac with a penchant and great love for blowing things up.

Two floors up, Quistis and SeeD's resident martial arts specialist had spotted the terrorist leader and followed him. They were momentarily delayed as they were fired upon by another man with a shotgun. Zell tossed a flash bang that distracted the man long enough for Quistis to drop him with pinpoint accuracy.

"X-Ray down in four Delta," Quistis said as they followed their target. Quistis inched the door open and saw the terrorist leader with a woman in each arm, his pistol ready. Quistis nodded at Zell and kicked the door open. The first person to see the two black clad machine gun toting figures was one of the woman.

"Oh god," She cried and the terrorist leader swung his gun towards them. Zell reacted instantly and fired twice. In a textbook shot the bullets went straight through the terrorist mouth and blew out the back of his brain, stopping a message getting to the trigger finger. He dropped and Zell closed him down, kicked the gun aside and finished him off with a bust of four shots to the chest. One of the woman was still screaming bloody murder, seemingly traumatised so Quistis grabbed her, spun her around and knocked her cold with a single punch to the temple.

"X-Ray down in four Golf." Zell radioed as he reloaded.

"Be advised," Squall radioed back. "One X-Ray is still unaccounted for; repeat one X-Ray is still active."

Five minutes later, the hostages were all sitting against the counter in the reception their hands on their heads. The missing terrorist had not been accounted for so Squall deduced that he was masquerading as a hostage.

"I want them all checked out!" He ordered. "We've still got one X-Ray active and I want him found."

"Right!" Zell said before going along the line of hostages. "Get your heads up! Get them up. UP!"

It was at that point Squall noticed a dark haired youth fidgeting and he stepped forwards. The women next to the youth instantly recognised Squall intentions and she looked up at Squall imploringly and pretty much nailed the coffin lid down.

"No!" She cried. "He's just a child! He won't hurt anyone! He's only…" She was cut off by the deafening chatter of Squall's weapon as he emptied his gun into the youth. Blood fountained everywhere and the hostages all started screaming their heads off. It took several blasts of a shotgun to restore order. Squall dragged the body of his kill away from the counter and pulled his blood stained jacket open. He withdrew a pistol and set in on the counter before tapping his radio.

"All X-Ray's accounted for." He said monotonously. "Stronghold secured. We're handing back to Plod in five minutes. All shooters remain by their victims. The news crews will want to talk to us I guess."

A few minutes later Cid entered, having been brought up to speed. He was followed by two paramedics who rushed upstairs to attend to Ryan. Two other men were with him and Squall guessed they were reporters. Cid looked over Squall's grisly handiwork calmly before turning to him.

"This one's yours I presume?" He waited until Squall nodded. "You are Soldier A." He turned to the reporters. "Do this one first."

"Right Soldier A," The reporter said before pulling out a notepad. "Tell me about it."

"He went for his weapon." Squall spoke monotone. "I believed he posed a reasonable threat to life and I duly fired." As the reporters moved on he noticed Zell looking at him. "Something to say Zell? Didn't I tell all shooters to remain by their victims?"

Later, as the police were trying to restore order Squall was sitting in the passenger seat and thinking about what had happened? When he rewound the scene in his mind he couldn't believe how calm he sounded. While Ryan was thrashing about, screaming and bleeding Squall had sounded as if he was ordering a pizza as opposed to letting control know that one of them was seriously injured. Squall looked up to see paramedics wheeling a body bag out of the building. Squall rushed over to them.

"Wait a second." He unzipped the bag and sure enough, Ryan was inside. Squall had heard that dead people look like they're sleeping. Ryan didn't. He's been a vibrant, buzzing young man and all that vitality was lost. No one could look at him and think he was anything other than dead. Squall sighed and closed Ryan's eyes.

"Are you okay?" One of the paramedics asked, sounding as if she genuinely cared. Squall nodded and grabbed Ryan's dog tags, undid the clasp and then zipped the bag up again.

"I'm fine." Squall replied as he stowed the tags in his belt kit. "Really, I'll be okay."

"If you're sure." The paramedic replied. "Nice job in there by the way."

"Cheers." Squall nodded before looking over at the rest of the SeeD forces. "Come on, bag up your weapons, get in the helis and we'll debrief back at Garden. We haven't got all day!"

* * *

As was customary the SeeD members who'd participated in the raid on the hotel headed to a bar for a warm down. Ryan's death had cast a slight shadow over the meeting but everyone knew the risks of what they did and they weren't about to let a death stop them celebrating the fact that they'd been successful. A framed photograph of Ryan in full uniform was resting on the bar. Squall turned away and faced the assembled SeeD's raising his glass.

"Ladies and gentlemen," He said quietly before casting a significant glance at the photo. "To Ryan."

"Ryan," The entire bar murmured as they raised their own glasses and drank. Squall took his pint glass, half of which he'd drained in one breath away from his mouth and cast a sidelong look at Zell who was observing him unsmilingly.

"What?" Squall asked, wondering why Zell was looking at him with something close to disgust on his face.

"They boy you shot." Zell replied. One of the hostage takers had been little more than sixteen and Squall had killed him when he'd been masquerading as a hostage.

"You mean the one that had his hand on a pistol?" Squall said taking another mouthful of his pint.

"You didn't know that." Zell replied glaring at him, disgust mounting as they stared each other down unflinchingly. Zell had faced building sized monsters, fanatical terrorists and a Sorceress bent on total destruction but Squall's antics lately had really rang some alarm bells.

"Yes I did." Squall replied easily, setting his glass down and motioning to the bar tender for another. "I could see it in his eyes. He was hiding something and I guessed I knew what."

"Oh really?" Zell sneered. "What if you were wrong? What if he'd just been trying to conceal some pot or something?"

"Then there'd be an investigation and I'd be pardoned due to heat of battle." Squall replied unconcernedly. "No problem."

"So that's all you care about then." Zell asked disgustedly. "Getting away with murder."

"Better him than one of the hostages." Squall growled. "They didn't choose to be there. He did. We don't get to be the best because we're nice and well mannered. We get to be the best because we train hard and we fight easy."

Zell shook his head and headed off towards some of the other SeeD. The brawler played a couple of games of pool with Irvine and a few recently graduated SeeD's before sitting down and glaring at the table top.

"You look pissed." Squall's girlfriend Rinoa said as she sat down on the arm of his chair. "Want to talk about it."

"Oh it's Squall." Zell muttered reluctantly. "It's not really important it's just a few of his antics have been annoying me lately and he kind of exceeded the limit earlier."

"Preaching to the choir baby." Rinoa replied. "He's had a bit of an attitude problem going on recently. What happened earlier?"

"Well there was this hostage taker that was masquerading as a hostage and Squall didn't make sure before blowing his head off." Zell shrugged. "What if he'd been wrong?"

"You killed one of them." Rinoa said quietly. "What matters is Squall knew who he was and he dealt accordingly."

"You're not getting it," Zell said insistently. "You weren't there. I killed my guy, the proper way. Two shots through the mouth, taking out the back of the brain stopping a message getting to the trigger finger and four more chest shots to finish him. Six bullets but Squall, oh no he uses an entire magazine on the poor sod. You can kill him with one bullet but Squall sees it fit to reduce him to tomato puree. The hostages were terrified, screaming the place down blue bloody murder. It was completely out of hand."

"Maybe you should see Doctor Kadowaki." Rinoa suggested. "If you're having that hard of a time with it…"

"It's not that." Zell said. "The method I used is a lot messier than most and after everything I've seen I'm not squeamish. It was the hostages I feel bad for. They were totally freaking out."

"They'll get over it." Rinoa said stubbornly, despite the fact that what Zell was saying was further proof that Squall was having some problems. "I'm sure Squall has his reasons for acting like he does."

"What you have to realise is that you and Squall have very different temperaments…" Rinoa said before Zell interrupted.

"Yeah and mine's the sane one." Zell continued forcefully. "The guy's not playing with a full deck. He has almost no deck. He's got a three."

"Zell let's be honest here." Rinoa said unimpressed at being interrupted. "Let's put all our cards on the table. You could be accused of overreacting from time to time couldn't you?"

"That's not what this is about." Zell said. "You're sleeping with the guy. You're not the best person to talk to about it. Someone really needs to talk some sense into him. Remember that terrorist leader we grabbed? Squall got some information out of him but when we handed him over to the Dollet authorities I noticed his torso was black and blue. We never hit him that hard when he got him so it only could've happened in the cell. I checked the tapes but they'd been wiped."

"You'd better not be saying what I think you are." Rinoa said, her voice hardening as she pointed a warning finger at Zell. Something was bothering Squall, that much was clear to her but she didn't like what Zell was saying, making Squall sound like a foaming at the mouth psychopath.

"Open your eyes Rinoa." Zell replied. "Something is seriously wrong with our eminent leader and the sooner it's remedied the easier it'll be on all of us."

Later that night the SeeD's were heading home. Several had left early and only the hard core drinkers remained, as well as the designated drivers and those of Ryan's friends who felt they owed him a decent send off. Zell and Irvine were a bit drunk, whereas Squall had bucked the popular opinion of him and was totally smashed, almost to the point where he could barely walk. He stopped by his Land Rover and after much difficulty and unintelligible muttering he pulled his keys from inside his jacket.

"Uh-uh there is no way you're driving!" Nida told him before reaching for the keys. "Give me the keys."

Squall's response was to push him back against the car and crack him across the face. Nida countered ruthlessly. He didn't drink so he easily reacted, jabbing two fingers into Squall's kidneys, sending him into spasm before punching the Commander in the back of the head and then bundling him to the ground.

"OI THAT'S ENOUGH!" Zell yelled at both of them as Squall hauled himself back to his feet. "You two get caught and you're out of SeeD and Garden." He bent down to pick up the keys that had been dropped in the scuffle.

"I'll take him back to Garden." Quistis announced supporting Squall towards her own car. "I haven't been drinking."

* * *

Most SeeD's were orphaned or had nothing resembling contact with their parents but unfortunately Ryan was not one of them. His mother had been crying when she'd arrived with the coffin but as the SeeD coffin bearers lowered it into the grave she was dry eyed. Cid approached her bearing a beret and a belt containing his battle knife. The coffin was mahogany with silver handles and a simple marker.

Corporal Ryan Graham Kemp

Rest in Peace

"I think Ryan would've wanted you to have this ma'am." He said handing her the items.

"He was so proud of being a soldier." She replied despondently. "So proud of being in SeeD."

"I'm sure you were very proud of him as well ma'am." Cid said attempting a reassuring smile. This was clearly the wrong thing to say.

"I would've been proud of him whatever he'd done." Mrs Kemp said glaring at him angrily. "I would've been proud of him if he was the bloody milk man! Mostly, I was just scared for him. Ever since he joined up. I don't want these." She tossed the beret and knife into the grave. "No offence, but he can have these. Maybe that's best. Maybe it meant more to him than his entire family." Cid and Squall exchanged looks as she shook the priests hand and then walked off.

"Excuse me, Mrs Kemp." Squall said as he followed her towards the car. Her shoulders were shaking with suppressed sobs.

"You're not going to start calling me ma'am are you?" She demanded as she stopped and turned around.

"No, I'm not." Squall said, deciding not to attempt a smile. "I'm Commander Leonhart."

"Are you?" She asked before shaking her head. "I'm sorry. I'm not as familiar with death as you are. I'm not sure how to do this."

"Ryan was a great lad," Squall told her sympathetically. "And a very good soldier. His marksman trainer once told me he could shoot the eyelashes off a gnat at forty paces."

"You're Squall Leonhart aren't you?" Mrs Kemp said, comprehension dawning on her face. "Ryan said you were the only one he was really frightened of."

"Well he always had a good sense of humour." Squall said, though inwardly he was a little shocked.

"No he didn't." Mrs Kemp contradicted him. "Not about that. He never, ever liked you. I'm sorry, I don't know how…to behave with all this." She broke down and Ryan's brother Luke escorted her to the car while Irvine came up behind Squall.

"So what did she say?" The sharpshooter asked.

"It was private." Squall told him shortly. "Now let's mount up, get out of here and get the beers in."

The venue for the wake was the Garden ball room, as they lacked any other room of adequate size. Black drapes were on the wall. Ryan had been well liked and nearly everyone had turned out for him. Squall was sitting at the bar between Zell and Quistis, staring into his pint glass.

"So," Quistis said after a long silence between them. "What did Ryan's mum say after the funeral?"

"Nothing important." Squall replied dismissively as he took a large mouthful of beer.

"So," Quistis said insistently, never being one to be put off by Squall's frequent relapses into what has become known as the "brooding block of wood mystique". "What did she say?"

"Quistis," Squall thundered ominously. "It's personal. Take the hint." He turned to Zell who was silently drinking. "What's your problem?"

"You're more murderous than usual." Zell observed dryly to which Squall simply shrugged. Irvine was on hand however.

"It's Ryan's wake Zell." He said. "I mean come on mate who were you expecting: Johnny bloody Chuckles?"

"I know whose wake it is Irvine and I'm choked to." Zell snapped. "But it's not like any of us are to blame."

Squall snorted.

"Well it isn't!" Zell continued. "Look guys if you want to be sad then fine, be sad. I'm sad but there is no point being guilty. It's one of those things."

"You know what Zell," Irvine hurled back, lighting a cigarette. "When I need you to start handing out forgiveness, then I'll really know I'm screwed."

"Good!" Zell barked, glaring at Irvine. "I can live with that." In reality Zell and Irvine were close friends but neither of them had ever been brilliant at taking things going wrong and especially where alcohol was a factor a fistfight wasn't out of the question.

"Ryan can't though can he?" Squall interjected.

"Oi!" Quistis said sternly, hitting him none to gently on the shoulder. "That's a low blow."

"Well I'd really like to know who died and elected Zell the bloody padre." Irvine exclaimed belligerently.

"Yeah Irvine," Zell said standing up too fast. "You know what I would really, really like to know?"

"I don't give a monkey's!" Irvine jeered.

"No because you are the bloody monkey!" Zell shouted. "So why don't you sod off and let the organ grinder here fight his own battles?"

"What's eating her?" Irvine said with a smirk so wide you could drive a tank through it.

"Irvine's right." Squall said decisively. "If you're feeling that philosophical about it you shouldn't be here."

"Steady!" A thoroughly shocked Quistis said.

"Well what's he saying?" Squall said, attempting to justify himself. "Easy come, easy go!"

"This is not what I'm saying!" Zell broke in forcefully.

"Bollocks!" Squall roared, his temper breaking before he composed himself. "Ryan was one of us and if you're not bothered about it, you've got a nerve turning up at the wake." He slid off his stool and smiled drunkenly. "That's all I'm saying." He wandered off, leaving behind a blue mage, brawler and sharpshooter, the latter two glaring as if they would like nothing better than to thump each other.

"No, no, no," Quistis said, keen to head off a confrontation. "Let me get the drinks in. Come on, no drama! Get back in your cages. Irvine, what can I get you?"

Two security guards opened the doors to the outside portion of the ballroom while another two bundled Zell and Irvine out. Zell tried to get back inside but Irvine clotheslined him. Zell scythed his feet around, knocking Irvine's out from under him. The sharpshooter hit the ground like the proverbial ton of bricks.

"Right, you asked for it!" Zell shouted furiously as he threw himself on Irvine, both of them rolling around in the rain.

"Get off of him!" Quistis outranked them both but they were both too angry and drunk to listen to reason. "Irvine, get off of him!"

"Get off me!" Zell yelled before bucking upwards and throwing Irvine off and punching him in the chest. "I'm going to kill you!"

"Give it a rest you two!" Quistis said, attempting to peel Zell off Irvine who was swearing fluently. "Stop it! That is enough!"

Irvine threw Zell off and they both leapt to their feet but Irvine charged forwards, tackling Zell and knocking him to the ground again.

"Shouldn't you be stopping that Squall?" One of the security guards said as he walked back inside. Squall's response was to nut the guard in the face, knocking him to the ground before smiling inanely and reeling back to the bar.

* * *

**Author Commentary: Uh oh, what's going on with Squall? Fear not all will be revealed in due course but things will get considerably worse before they get better believe me. You may think I'm still exhibiting my recently abated hatred for both Squall and Rinoa but that's not my plan. That said I don't think a large portion of this fic will please fans of the Squall and Rinoa romance but I beg of you please don't write it off out of hand. My point being that the whole game was built around that epic love story so believe me when I say it will remain pivotal but it will also go through a boatload of conflict like any half decent romance (Clark and Lois, Elena and Stefan/Damon). This episode was based heavily off the Iranian Embassy siege in 1980, as I wanted to draw parallels between the S.A.S. and SeeD as the ultimate fighting forces in their respective worlds. Please don't mention Delta Force, Spetsnaz or Kopassus. It's my opinion that the S.A.S. is the toughest regiment in the world, but it's an opinion, not fact. Tell me who you think if you want. The other primary characters will turn up but if you're a fan of Final Fantasy Eight's resident bad boy Seifer Almasy you will have to wait a fairly considerable amount of time. You will know all about it when he turns up believe me. A couple of original characters will turn up, including one that's a dangerous random factor. Seriously, the guy makes Keith Moon look responsible and reserved and he is immense fun to write. As always I'd appreciate a review but please don't feel as if you've got to leave one. I'd appreciate reviews containing constructive criticism over all others, even those that make me out to be a cult figure (I can dream) and if you want to leave a flame or the venomous death threats I probably will receive because of where I'm taking Squall then feel free. Don't expect me to lose sleep though because I'm well aware that my work is not to everyone's tastes. 'Til next time.**

**~Ally Todd**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Dante's Inferno**

Dante Skyle was nothing special to look upon. Bordering on six feet tall with a thin but strong looking build, medium length brown hair and deep, penetrating hazel eyes were his distinguishing features. He was dressed modestly in a black leather jacket, black jeans and blue muscle shirt. This particular night he was in a strip club in Deling City, drinking a glass of whisky while regarding the pole dancer with a mixture of mild interest and detachment. He drained his glass and was contemplating going outside for a cigarette when another glass was set down in front of him. Dante sighed and looked up.

A young man was looking down at him, an unreadable expression on his face. Like Dante he looked like he was in his early twenties with dark hair and eyes and he was pointedly ignoring the numerous strippers who were nearly all shooting admiring looks at him. He possessed a very lean and slender build and was slightly taller than Dante. He was simply gazing down at Dante impassively and seemed to be waiting for Dante to make the next move. Dante wasn't reserved at the best of time so he decided to hurry up the process of conversation.

"Um…thanks," Dante said warily, pushing the glass back towards the man. "But you're not really my type, so be a good lad and push off." The man didn't move and after a few seconds the silent scrutiny was beginning to get to him. "What are you gawking at?"

"Guy like you, whiling away his time in some cheesy downtown strip dive," The man observed in a difficult to place accent. "Looks like someone who's feeling kind of lost."

"Funny, I thought I knew exactly where I was." Dante nodded at the sign on the wall. "A place called the Peppermint Stick. Prima ballerina up there…" He indicated the pole dancer "…is Sunshine, although I'm fairly certain that's not her real name."

"You know," The man replied calmly, taking a step towards Dante. "We really should talk."

"You know, really not." Dante countered before standing up and aggressively getting in the man's face. "I don't know what you're selling, and quite frankly I don't give a damn but I think it's best you peddle your wares somewhere else if you know what's good for you."

The man simply stood aside and gestured as if to say "your loss" and letting Dante walk past him. Dante was nearly at the exit when the man, took Dante's vacated chair deployed his master stroke.

"Hey Dante," He called out, watching him for a reaction. "You take any interesting holidays recently?"

Dante went rigid before turning to look at the man who was now idly sipping the glass of whiskey. He stormed over belligerently and glowered down at the man with a look that would have most people running as fast as possible in the opposite direction.

"Who the bloody hell are you?" He snarled between clenched teeth, his tone effectively conveying the impression that the man would end up in pretty considerable pain if Dante didn't get a satisfactory answer.

"Your new best friend." The man replied before motioning Dante into a chair and offering the glass to him. Dante shook his head and studied the man more closely. There was something familiar about him, his appearance. His facial structure and his eyes were familiar but Dante couldn't place them.

"What do you want from me?" Dante asked his voice barely audible over the thumping bass.

"Come on Dante," The man laughed. "You must know that people out there are very interested in you. Powerfully interested one might say." He raised the glass to his lips but Dante seized his wrist in an iron hard grip, causing the glass to fall and shatter on the floor.

"Enough of the cryptic." Dante growled, starting to viciously twist the man's wrist. "I want to know who you are, what you want and how fast I can snap your forearm before you answer."

"You can call me Gaston," The man replied, grunting as Dante released his arm. "But it's not what I want. It's what you want. You've got your life back. What are you going to do about it?"

"What are you talking about?" Dante said nonplussed. "You might want to fess up before I deem in prudent to do some damage starting with you."

"Just remember that you asked for it." The man…Gaston…said. "Does the word Obsidian mean anything to you?"

"It rings a bell, yeah." Dante said, trying to keep his voice neutral, a difficult feat given the turn this conversation had taken.

"Come on Dante," Gaston smiled. "You and I both know that the word rings not so much a bell as an alarm. I know where you were recently. I also know exactly who you are and I know exactly who's responsible. You might even say I know everything that's relevant."

"Okay that's enough!" Dante snapped. "I've heard enough. I don't know what your problem with them is but I'd recommend hiding your ass on the other side of the globe. They're bad news. I learnt that the hard way." He stormed towards the exit.

"Hang on a second!" Gaston went after him and caught his arm. Before he knew what was stopping Dante slammed him against the nearest wall by his throat. He tightened his grip until Gaston couldn't breathe too well.

"You know so much about me, you should know I get really violent when I'm being played." He growled before he bounced Gaston back against the wall and stormed out. Gaston sighed theatrically before rubbing his neck and grinning at a thoroughly shocked stripper.

"Happens."

A couple of hours later Gaston walked out of the strip club. He briefly contemplated hunting down Dante and making him pay for the fundamental lack of respect the other man had exhibited but before he could action the impulse he received a hard blow to the back of the head. The implement was piece of two by four that snapped on the impact. Somehow Gaston stayed upright and he turned around, expecting to see Dante, possibly carrying a heavy duty firearm. His assailant stepped into the light, a look of childlike sadism etched on his features. Gaston's eyes widened.

"You!"

"Me."

* * *

For the majority of pupils at the military academy of Balamb Garden the Training Centre was a place to be taken seriously. Admittedly the Grats were less than dangerous but the Training Centre was also home to the large, perpetually bad tempered and homicidally dangerous T-Rexaur. To Squall, the Training Centre was a place to unwind whenever the stress of his job got to him which was frankly not a rare occurrence. He was still trying to get over the incident in Deling City. He was well aware of the risks in his job but Ryan was the first loss under his command. He wandered into the Training Centre, his signature weapon the Revolver model gun blade unsheathed and swinging by his side.

It wasn't long before he came under attack. A trio of Grat's stormed out of the bushes waving their tentacles at him. Squall acted quickly, sprinting towards the nearest he ducked under the tentacles and brought the Revolver down on the top of its bulbous body, bisecting it firmly. He jumped backwards to avoid the resulting explosion of blood, stomach acid and semi-digested god knows what. He ducked a scything tentacle and faced off the other two Grats that were seemingly content to swipe at him with their tentacles.

Squall sized the two monsters up while deflecting the tentacles with ease. He finished his analysis and whipping out a knife propelled it at one Grat. He didn't bother checking if it had hit and he charged at the other monster. However all its tentacles shot out and hit him hard in the head and chest, flooring him and knocking the Revolver out of his hands. He rolled to his feet and as the Grat lashed out again he seized the tentacles. He gritted his teeth as the sharpened edges bit into his palms. The Grat promptly went berserk and Squall was borne aloft. The Grat proceeded to bash him off the walls until Squall pulled out a knife from his ankle sheath and he sliced through the tentacles. Cutting a Grat's tentacles was not like cutting spiders legs. The tentacles were a Grat's largest organ containing seven vital arteries. Damage like that would've severed all of them.

Squall hit the ground hard raising dust before rolling to avoid a tentacle as the second Grat thrashed about in its death throes. Squall returned the knife to its ankle sheath and scooped up the Revolver before facing the last Grat. It seemed a tad insecure what with a knife sticking out of its side but it seemed game for a rumble. It charged straight at Squall who skipped nimbly aside fending it off gashing its side. The Grat attacked with its tentacles but Squall ducked under them and drove the tip of his gun blade into its side. Then he pulled the trigger and the Grat exploded. It just came apart. Squall picked himself up, having dived flat to avoid being hit with the mess he'd created. Aside from a few splatters he seemed to be alright. He turned slowly at the sound of applause.

"Excellent!" A voice called as a figure appeared around a rock. "I've never seen Grats executed so effectively. A little unconventional maybe, but otherwise top marks."

Squall raised the Revolver slightly as he looked the man over. He was pretty certain that he'd never seen him before but the man was nothing special to look upon so he couldn't be sure. He was thin, but strong looking with short but immaculately groomed brown hair and gold rings in each of his ears. He was wearing a black suit jacket and slacks and a white shirt. His top two buttons were undone, revealing the top of a tribal tattoo on his chest. His eyes were his most remarkable feature. They were a deep dark blue, bordering on black. The man also had a katana sword sheathed vertically down his back. He was smiling as if at a private joke and for some reason the smile set Squall on edge. The man wasn't immediately threatening so Squall lowered the Revolver but made no move to sheath it.

"I was hoping you'd encounter a T-Rexaur so I could see a better showcase of your skills but why dwell." The man said. "The Grats were satisfactory."

"Who are you?" Squall demanded, keeping a wary eye on the man. "How did you get in here?"

"You'll forgive me Commander but your security leaves a lot to be desired." The man said before looking contemplative. "Actually to be fair, I suppose they'd keep the average Joes of the world out. I am very far from average. I am extraordinary."

"You don't do modesty very well do you?" Squall bit off caustically.

"I do modesty fine, but I do honesty first." The man replied. "I'm the best in the world at what I do."

"Which is?" Squall enquired, unable to shake the feeling that there was something seriously off about this mysterious visitor.

"Bit of this, bit of that, bit of the other." The man replied evasively. "Enough about me though, let's talk about you. I've wanted to meet you for quite some time Squall. I came here to meet the renowned killer."

"I prefer soldier." Squall corrected. "It's just killer sounds so…"

"Naked?" The man completed smoothly. "You might as well face it Squall. You're a killer, murderer, butcher and okay, a soldier. It's nothing to be ashamed of. The world needs people like that."

"Look," Squall said, fighting to control his rising temper. "If you're going to start giving me labels maybe you could throw a name at me."

"You'd be surprised how many I've got." The man said before inclining his head to Squall. "My current name is Swift Obsidian and I have come to see you."

"What do you want from me?" Squall asked.

"I wanted to meet you." The man…Swift…said. "You must know you're famous Squall. People think you're the second coming. The Hero With No Fear and so forth? Sound recognizable?

"Yeah I'm familiar." Squall said between gritted teeth. He'd developed a near irrational hatred of the title the world's media had seen fit to impose on him in the wake of the Ultimecia Affair as it had become known. It had also had the massive drawback of killing any chance of him going undercover stone dead.

"Good." Swift nodded. "One of my main reasons for wanting to meet you is you're being billed as one of, if not the world's best swordsman. I know the gun blade technically isn't a sword but that's irrelevant. I'm a swordsman myself." He indicated his katana.

"I can see that." Squall said dryly. "I can also see that you came here to try my patience. If you don't vacate these premises immediately I'll get the security team to kick your ass out."

"I got past them tonight because I prefer stealth to all out combat." Swift replied. "If I'm pushed though, I will respond more often than not with extreme violence. Anyway why would you call security? It's not very hero like."

"I never asked to become a hero!" Squall snapped, his anger beginning to get the better of him as he and Swift started to circle.

"No but to the world in general you are one." Swift replied. "You can't hide from that Squall and you can't hide from the obligations. Most importantly of all you can't hide from a fight."

Swift lunged forwards with inhuman speed and his blade met Squall's with a deafening crash. They held for a second before disengaging and Swift spun around with a slice at waist height that Squall parried. Swift backed up before aiming a thrust at Squall's stomach. Squall knocked the blow sideways before stabbing downwards attempting to lame Swift. Swift however danced nimbly aside before aiming a decapitation blow that Squall barely blocked. Squall aimed a thrust at Swift's chest but Swift knocked it aside and slashed at Squall's thigh. Squall parried the blow once more before spinning to put more force behind a chop aimed at Swift's neck. Swift however danced out of range and laughed.

"I was right." He said happily. "You are really, really good."

"Just wait until you see how good." Squall growled before charging.

Squall closed on Swift at top speed and he launched a barrage of fast, accurate blows. They were anger fuelled but controlled and while most sword wielders the world over would be hard pressed to defend themselves Swift parried or dodged every blow with irritating ease before launching his own attack with equal skill. He forced Squall back a couple of paces but Squall was equal to the task of defending himself. However he did have a sneaking suspicion that he'd bitten off more than he could chew. Swift was fast and he was strong. Squall wasn't particularly given to taking chances so he cast a Fire spell. A mushroom of flames erupted around Swift, blasting him off his feet. He hopped back to his feet laughing.

"There it is." He laughed. "The tried and tested Seed method. If you can't win through combat alone use magic. How honourable."

"Honour isn't something we worry about in our line of work." Squall said. "All these outdated concepts like living by the sword or fighting fair will only get us killed now are we going to finish this fight or not?"

"I don't think so." Swift said. "I've had enough but hey Squall, you are exceptionally talented and I mean that sincerely. We'll meet again soon."

"Who the hell are you?" Squall called as Swift stated to walk off, sheathing his sword.

"Look me up." Swift replied enigmatically. "I'm sure it'll make interesting reading." With that and a flicker of movement he was gone.

Squall briefly contemplated going after him but quickly dismissed it as hopeless. Swift had also revealed he was a master of swords play and he'd also managed to break into one of the most secure buildings on the planet. Contrary to what he said, the security in Balamb Garden was second to none.

Squall spun at the sound of a twig snapping behind him and raised the Revolver before lowering it when he recognised Zell's familiar profile.

"You shouldn't sneak up like that!" Squall exclaimed sheathing the Revolver. "I nearly took your head off."

"Sorry," Zell said, eyeing him warily. "To be fair I wasn't trying to sneak up on you."

"Sorry," Squall grunted. "I'm just a little on edge. I had a visitor in here tonight and he spun my head a little." He quickly filled Zell in on his meeting with Swift.

"So the guy tried to kill you?" Zell muttered his face pensive. "That doesn't bode well for us."

"I don't think he was out to seriously hurt me." Squall shook his head. "He was testing me. He was making a lot of noise about me being one of the best swordsmen in the world."

"Do you think it could be just be injured pride?" Zell suggested dubiously. "This guy, I've never heard of him. Maybe he's got it into his head that because you're so famous for being handy with a blade he deserves the same sort of reputation."

"You could argue Seifer deserves it then." Squall said. "I think we won't get a great deal in the way of answers before we feed his name into the archives."

"I'll do it then." Zell replied. "I'm on my way down there anyway. If I were you, I wouldn't over think it. Maybe he's just some mercenary that decided to have a go at you for the hell of it."

"He was in here." Squall said. "I doubt it'd be a bad idea to grab some CCTV stills and feed them into the archives as well."

* * *

Squall wasn't the only person in the Garden suffering from insomnia. Quistis was sitting just inside the front entrance, watching the sky and attempting to guess when the rain would start. She fished a small silver hip flask from her pocket and unscrewing the top took a mouthful. Technically she wasn't supposed to drink on duty but everyone needed a way to unwind and everyone would turn a blind eye provided she didn't get completely plastered.

There was a rumble of thunder overhead and a flash of lightning. Quistis sighed theatrically. A storm was coming in, that was for sure and she'd probably end up having to deal with tearful junior class men. Quistis privately enjoyed thunderstorms. There was something oddly satisfying about being inside, separated from the fury of the elements by a pane of glass. She took another drink and looked heavenwards contemplatively.

Usually in Balamb you had a semblance of warning before the rain started. A few drops would fall, giving people time to head for cover and for umbrellas to rise. This time there was no warning whatsoever. The rain fell as if a dam had burst. In an instant it was flooding down, an ocean of rain that spluttered out of drainpipes, hammered against the roofs and turned the earth to mud. Quistis sighed. She'd probably have to write out an invoice for storm damage in the morning. Just what she needed.

Quistis frowned as she took another mouthful of bourbon. She could've sworn she'd heard someone calling for help. She cocked her head and listened slightly harder but it was difficult to hear anything with the sound of the rain falling and frequent claps of thunder so Quistis shrugged and dismissed it. It was probably her mind playing tricks on her but what happened next put paid to that idea.

A young man around her age crawled up the steps towards her. He was naked from the waist up and he was clearly far from well, the mass of bloodstains on his torso were testament to that. He had short dark brown hair and green eyes. He would probably be handsome if he wasn't on deaths door and repeatedly ringing the bell. His face was a mass of cuts and bruises and he was basically dragging his body along with his arms. Quistis rushed forward regardless of the rain and grabbed him by his arms and pulled him inside. She looked him over and he glanced up at her with a pained grimace.

"I was am…" He said weakly before his head lolled and he passed out. Quistis dragged him further inside and two security guards rushed over. One grabbed the man under his shoulders while the other grabbed his ankles. Usually, you would be gentler with someone who was quite clearly seriously hurt but the priority was getting him medical help immediately. Quistis led the security guards into the infirmary and hammered on Doctor Kadowaki's door. She opened it, looking drowsy.

"Quistis, what are you playing at? It's nearly one in the morning." She said before she noticed the limp form being carried by the security guards. "Get him in here quick! Look at the state of him!"

It quickly became apparent the majority of the blood was from two bullet wounds in his back. Neither wound was fatal in themselves but the blood loss could be a serious problem. They had somehow missed the major organs but they'd certainly done some pretty serious damage. His left shoulder blade was split in half and the bullet had ricocheted upwards, leaving an exit wound right in front of his collar bone. An X-ray immediately determined the other bullet was lodged between his ribs, having somehow made it between the lung and liver. The face could wait; the first priority was determining the damage the bullets had done and removing the one that was still in his body.

"Do you think I should let Squall know?" Quistis asked. "He'd want to know about someone taking two bullets and turning up here of all places."

"I don't care what you do." Kadowaki replied selecting a surgical scalpel. "Just let me work."

"Is he going to make it?" Quistis asked. Her limited knowledge of the punishment a human body could endure told her it wasn't looking good.

"He's not out of the woods yet." Kadowaki replied without looking up. "He's lost a lot of blood so we may have to go with a transfusion. I'll need Squall to give me authorization to go into the blood bank."

Quistis nodded and headed out to leave Kadowaki to work. She was just passing the Training Centre when Zell and Squall emerged deep in conversation. They barely noticed Quistis until she stopped right in front of them.

"Squall," She spoke up. "We've got a bit of a situation in the infirmary. Come with me?"

"Ah Christ, what now?" Squall growled exasperatedly as Zell took his leave "Sorry it's been a bit of an eventful night."

"Well I hate to tell you this," Quistis said attempting a smile. "But it's about to get a lot more eventful. This guy just turned up and he isn't looking at all well."

"Quistis get to the point." Squall said firmly.

"We might need a transfusion for this guy." Quistis cut to the chase. "He's practically on deaths door. He was shot twice in the back and his face is all cut up too."

"And you need my authorization to go into the blood bank?" Squall said knowingly. "Here's the thing. The blood bank is for SeeD and cadets, not for some random guy."

"You've got to see him." Quistis returned insistently. "You can't just let the guy die when you see the state he's in."

"Okay so say we save his life and he decided to repay us by going on a killing spree?" Squall suggested before borrowing a line from the SeeD hand book. "Golden rule, hope for the best plan for the worse."

"Oh for the days I could pull rank on you." Quistis muttered venomously glaring at him.

"All right," Squall sighed theatrically, running a hand down his face. "You can go into the blood bank. I've had a difficult night and right now all I want is to go to bed? Is that too much to ask?"

"Looks like your heart isn't entirely stone after all." Quistis observed with a grin that told Squall she was well aware of the irony of the statement.

"There's so much paradox here I could write a poem." Squall bit off before heading for the lift while Quistis headed back to the infirmary. She walked in to see Kadowaki stitching up a cut on the man's chest.

"I got the bullet out." Kadowaki announced pointing to a small metal container on a nearby surface. Quistis looked in to see a blood covered bullet nestling in one corner. She picked it out and examined it.

"Nine millimetre .45 calibre." Quistis mused as she replaced the bullet in the container. "He's lucky to be alive after taking two of these."

"They didn't hit anything important but they still did a hell of a lot of damage." Kadowaki observed. "I doubt we'll get all the bone chips from his shoulder blade and we may need to do some work on his subclavian artery. That's the one that carries blood over the lung and into the arm. Having said that, he's very fit and he should pull through barring complications."

"Then we can maybe figure out who he is." Quistis put in. "Maybe he'll even be able to tell us who did this to him and why they wanted him dead."

"I don't think they wanted him dead." Kadowaki said lightly. "The entry wounds are on his back so he was shot from behind. If they wanted him dead they probably would've put two bullets into the back of his head or the base of his neck."

"So unless the shooter was a complete plank you think they meant to keep him alive?" Quistis mulled it over thoughtfully. "Why would they do that? To send a message?"

"I don't know." Kadowaki shrugged. "It isn't my area of expertise but hopefully he'll be able to shed some light on it when he comes to. We don't need to give him a transfusion but we might need restraints. I've seen less severe injuries resulting in high level post-traumatic stress disorder so god only knows what his state of mind will be like."

"I guess we'll have to see." Quistis grimaced. "Couldn't you just put him on sedation?"

"He's not entirely out of the woods yet." Kadowaki replied. "I daren't give him any more morphine. It could pitch him over the edge and into a full scale coma or worse. I think we should just let him rest but get someone to keep an eye on him."

"I'll do it." Quistis volunteered. "I'm the only person he saw before he passed out. If he sees someone he doesn't know who knows how he'll react."

"It sounds like a good idea." Kadowaki nodded. "If anything happens, let me know. I'll check on you first thing in the morning okay?"

* * *

It was truly a remarkable weapon, the sniper thought as he set out the components of his weapon. First he screwed the barrel onto the stock and fitted the muzzle brake. Next came the scope that he slid on and adjusted until the view through it was as sharp as it would get. He pulled out a collapsible bipod and propped the gun up on it. Then he extended the stock and fitted a ten round .50 calibre magazine before slamming it into place with the heel of his hand.

The weapons was a highly modified Barret M82 sniper rifle and given he was just over half a mile from the target area there were very few weapons in the world that could do the job he had in mind. It was a semi-automatic and therefore superior to bolt action rifles, but he only needed one bullet so it made no difference. The tip of the gun nosed through the open window as he slipped the safety catch off and slid his finger inside the trigger guard, before gently stroking the trigger and peering through the scope.

The building he was currently sighting on was called Caraway's Mansion and it was situated in one of Deling City's most affluent areas. It was, as the name suggested the private residence of former General and President of Galbadia, Fury Caraway. As an old soldier, Caraway was highly security conscious. His mansion was behind ten metre high walls that could stop a blast from most heavy duty howitzers. The walls were also topped with razor wire and crushed glass. Snipers were dotted around the compound which was patrolled by a small army of guards and highly unstable guard dogs. It had taken the sniper a not inconsiderable time to find a position where he could take Caraway out inside the walls, when his guard would be down. Still, he'd never been one to let a few hundred setbacks dissuade him. It was a perfect night for the shot. There was no wind and it wasn't too humid and he'd already factored in the Coriolis Effect. Now all he had to do was wait.

Caraway was speaking to the government on this night and by the sniper's estimate he would just be wrapping up, taking closing statements and so on. That meant it could only be eighteen minutes before he spotted the line of armoured limousines. Caraway and his men constantly rotated for security so the sniper would know which car he was in before he stepped out. He cradled his rifle gently and closed his eyes, willing himself to remain calm. Did it matter that he was minutes away from committing a crime that had the potential to pitch the world headfirst into chaos? No it didn't matter. In the moment, Caraway wouldn't be a person. He'd be a heart, a pair of lungs and the sniper was a surgeon, sent to carry out a surgical act, though not with a scalpel but a bullet. It was a terrible thing to kill a human being, but Caraway was not a human. He was a number of rings in a firing range.

_Just a target._

The sniper opened his eyes and he saw the first of the limousines appear. He tracked the vehicles with his rifle as they slowed and stopped at the gate. The gate opened and the limousines headed up the drive. The sniper had run a computer simulation and he'd deduced that he'd have twelve seconds. He readied himself as the limousines stopped. This was it, just seconds away.

There! The third car's doors had opened at the same time as the others and the sniper instantly identified Caraway. He sighted on the target before pulling the trigger. The gunshot was deafening and the entire compound exploded into frenzied activity. The bodyguards didn't even bother checking whether Caraway was dead or alive. They bundled him back into the car that took off like a scalded Snow Lion.

The sniper dropped the rifle and stripped off the disposable gloves. He'd take them with him, but he knew that the secret services would figure out where the shot had come from, and they'd do it quickly. Well let them come, he'd be long gone. He'd leave the gun as a consolation prize for them. He stood up and exited the room through the open door, and the building via a similarly unsecured fire escape, taking great care not to touch anything. He laughed quietly to himself.

And it really didn't matter that he'd missed.

* * *

**Author Commentary: Just for future reference chapters may well be coming out faster than this one. This went through a couple of different incarnations during writing, and to boot I was out last night with the very predictable mission statement of getting so bladdered I'd forget where I lived. But I digress. The character of Swift Obsidian is based heavily off a couple of characters from popular culture. One is the morally ambiguous Lindsey MacDonald from the TV series _Angel _played by Christian Kane. The other…well I can't really tell you that because that would blow the central mystery altogether and I cannot allow that to happen. If you think you know who else I've based him around send me a review to give you my theories. I'm not going to tell you if you're right but I'm interested. As for the character of Gaston, he was mainly brought in to set up the character of Dante's main story arc. Gaston isn't dead, but he is neutralized and it'll be a long time until we see more of him. As for the mystery bullet victim, he'll wake up soon and we'll see what his mental state is like as well as finding out who he is. If you've guessed who shot him I'll give you a medal. I understand this chapter may be considered a tad slow after the heavy action, light plot offering in chapter one but that said this was set up mainly to introduce my OC's. A few more will come and I can but hope they'll be relatively few and far between. In the next chapter we should see a little more of Squall's gradually unravelling state of mind and we'll get some more of our mysterious snipers activities. I would appreciate a review beyond words and I am immensely flattered by the one I got from Dee, so thank you whoever you may be. **

**~Ally Todd**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Mika**

"The bullet went on to knock Caraway's hat off, demolish two stone urns and bury itself seven inches in the mansion wall." Squall stated, describing the attempted assassination of the Galbadian president.

"From half a mile away." A stocky man with thinning ginger hair and a ruddy weather beaten face mused. His name was Talon and he was Balamb Gardens armourer, having picked up most of his skills in Galbadian's tougher jails. "I'd guess it was either an AW50 or a Barret."

"Correct." Squall nodded approvingly. "They've found the gun and it was a highly modified Barret M82. The shooter is still at large and Caraway's under house arrest because they don't want the sniper to have another go. I may not want to admit it but the Galbadian authorities have done a bang up job hushing this up. If it wasn't for Caraway's connection to one of our cadets we wouldn't even know about it now."

"Did we get anything off the weapon?" Cid asked. "Fingerprints perhaps?"

"The sniper was a professional." Squall shook his head. "There is one interesting detail however. They fed the serial number into the Galbadian Military archives and apparently the rifle was registered to Major Eric Coates of the Dragon Squadron."

"Have they pulled him in yet?" Quistis enquired. "Dragon Squadron officer or not, they're going to crucify him."

"That is where, as they say, the plot thickens." Squall elaborated. "Apparently Major Coates was killed in a helicopter crash near Timber six years ago and he was buried at sea. Reading between the lines I'd say it looks like a black bag op."

"What about the Dragon Squadron armourers?" Talon asked. "If you ask me, not noticing a highly powerful sniper rifle going walkabout is a fairly massive oversight."

"Well I've asked for CCTV footage from their weapons storage facilities." Squall continued. "Unfortunately that's where negotiations break down."

"I have a theory that could qualify as worst case scenario." Quistis spoke up. "You don't think it could be, you know, him?" It was instantly clear to Cid, Squall and Talon who Quistis was referring to.

"We'd be idiot to not address every possible explanation," Squall replied. "But it's not Seifer's style. He likes to make a splash and go for the grand effect. Relatively speaking, a sniper is pretty low profile next to Seifer's modus operandi, by which I mean kicking the door in and chopping everyone between him and Caraway into croutons."

"Okay Seifer's not exactly low profile, but he has managed to evade us, not to mention task forces from Galbadia, Esthar and Trabia Garden for four years running." Quistis reasoned. "Being a fugitive for that long can't have done his mental state any favours, and let's face it; he wasn't exactly Joe Sanity in the first place. We know he was involved with Rinoa so maybe he's finally cracked and decided to resolve, for want of a better term, her daddy issues."

"It's an interesting theory but I'm with Squall on this." Cid contributed. "If it was Seifer he'd want us to know it was him, and if it was the act of a madman the forensics would've found something and we know they're coming up empty."

"We'll follow it up as we do with every other lead." Squall said in an attempt to appease Quistis who was looking a little mutinous. "As if now, Talon you're booked on a flight to Deling City at noon."

"I'm not sure if that's a good idea." Talon said. "They're hardly going to be overjoyed to see me." Talon had originally been a fanatical Timber nationalist and after nearly twenty years of violent anti-Galbadian crime he'd garnered a reputation as a dangerous liability at best and a convicted terrorist and legitimate Dragon Squadron target at worst.

"I hope I can trust you to behave with the utmost professionalism." Squall smiled thinly at him. "You're going to liaise with the Galbadian ballistics experts and let them know that the full force and faith of Balamb Garden is committed to stopping this happening again."

Talon sighed theatrically before standing up and striding out of the room, nearly colliding with a female SeeD member who was about to enter. The SeeD marched to the front of the room and saluted before standing to attention.

"Stand easy," Squall nodded to the SeeD.

"Sir, the Doctor asked me to find you." The SeeD stated. "The man in the infirmary is awake."

"Has he said anything yet?" Squall asked, his interest piqued. "Especially regarding who he is or who reduced his face to a pound of mince and then shot him twice in the back for good measure."

"I'm afraid I don't have all the facts sir," The SeeD replied. "All I know is he regained consciousness about fifteen minutes and started shouting his head off and blaming everyone but himself. The Doctor nearly had to sedate him."

"That bodes well," Quistis murmured. "Mind you, given the state he was in when we found him I can't blame him for being a bit skittish, if not flat out, bug shagging crazy."

"Fair point," Squall nodded. "I think it might be best if we give him a few hours to adjust before we make with the interrogation. I think it's fairly obvious he was attacked within sight of Balamb Garden and that could mean a pretty serious security risk so we'll have to balance the need for information against his understandably fragile mental state."

"Let me talk to him." Quistis said decisively. "I was the only person he saw before he passed out and I guess a familiar face might help. It might even convince him to open up. Let's face it Squall, while your people skills have improved vastly over the last four years I still wouldn't call you particularly cuddly or personable."

"Cuddly?" Squall echoed sounding revolted.

"Sorry, poor choice of words." Quistis amended patiently. "Why don't you grab some CCTV footage from Balamb, see if there are any hints as to what happened with this guy?"

* * *

Dante rampaged into his dingy apartment on the fourth floor of a block on Deling City's outskirts, carrying a carrier bag full of alcohol in one hand and a container of takeaway kebabs in the other. He kicked the door closed and set the bag and takeaway down on a table. He rooted through the bag and pulled out a small bottle of vodka. He unscrewed the top and drained half of it in a single breath allowing the fiery liquid to warm him from the inside. Dante ripped open a container of rice and lamb kebabs and started to wolf them down accompanied by mouthfuls of vodka.

While he ate and gave his liver a good kicking Dante's thoughts wandered before coming to rest firmly on the encounter in the strip club the previous night. He briefly contemplated heading out, locating Gaston and doing something unpleasant to him, pins and needles perhaps. He quickly dismissed that idea. He got the impression that Gaston was just a messenger and he knew from painful experience that killing the messenger wasn't a good idea at the best of times. Besides, if he found Gaston he'd probably end up torturing him to find out exactly what he knew. Dante sighed and pulled out his mobile phone. He quickly hit a number on his speed dial, a number he was fairly sure he'd hoped never to use again.

"I'm sorry the number you have dialled is not in service as this moment." A politely synthesized voice told him. "Please leave a message or redial."

Dante let out a string of expletives through a mouthful of lamb and rice and contemplated throwing his phone, but that had never helped. He stopped momentarily. Since when head he cared whether or not anything helped as long as it made him feel better. Maybe he was getting sentimental in his old age. He took another mouthful of lamb and washed it down with the last of the vodka before heading over to his bed and looking under it. He pulled out a bag and rooted through it, checking the contents. He unzipped a side pocket and pulled out a Dollet Dukedom passport. If he couldn't find answers on the phone he'd have to do the next best thing. It was time to move on anyway. If this Gaston character knew who he was and how to find him, there was no telling who else did, and there was any number of people in Dante's life he never wanted to see again.

He quickly retrieved his possessions from wherever they'd gravitated to during his three months in this apartment. He threw the most important stuff into his rucksack and elected to leave everything else for whoever ended up in this apartment next. Then he quickly vacated, leaving the key in the door and leaving a small bundle of paper money on the bed as his final instalment of rent and housekeeping money. Then he headed outside and towards the bus stop. By his estimate it would be about twenty minutes before the number 08 bus to the train station would be arriving so he simply sat down on his rucksack and pulled out a pack of playing cards. Thanks to long arduous hours of practise and having a lot of time on his hands Dante had very nearly perfected the art of card counting. One of these days he was going to make his fortune by trying it out in those big casino's in Esthar. He'd tried it a few times in smaller casinos in Galbadia and Timber with almost total success. He wondered if there'd be much difference in Esthar. It was at that point a shadow fell across him. He looked up.

Three young men were looking down at him. Two were skinheads, possibly brothers with pale almost translucent skin and spindly limbs. The third man was heavily built with long curly hair and a beard. He was dressed in motorcycle leathers, but his jacket was undone, revealing a heavy metal t-shirt underneath and a pretty substantial paunch.

"What're you doing?" One of the skinheads demanded of Dante who expertly gathered up his cards and slid them back into the packet before dropping it into his jacket pocket. He stood up.

"Well seeing as you ask," Dante grinned, self-assuredly. "I'm playing poker with my ghost. Do you want to join us?"

"Lookee here, a wise guy." The second skinhead scoffed, sharing an unimpressed look with his cohorts.

"Me? A wise guy?" Dante said pulling a wide eyed expression of innocence before his features hardened. "Compared to you? Definitely."

All credit to the skinheads, they very quickly recognised the change in terms. While their bearded friend looked on with mild interest they pulled out knives and advanced on Dante who held his ground and nonchalantly pulled out a bottle of whiskey.

"Got any money?" One of the skinheads demanded, clearly not the most subtle of humans. "Not for long you won't."

"Seriously guys," Dante lowered his voice and dropped his smile. "Wrong day, wrong guy. Go rob someone else." He took a mouthful of whiskey.

One of the skinheads swore and lunged forwards. Dante reacted like lightening. He seized the thug by his lapels and tugging him forward nutted him. The thug staggered backwards and Dante spun on his heel before unleashing a back kick that smashed into the thugs abdomen. His eyes and mouth popped wide open, but air seemed to be the one thing he couldn't find. He went down slowly as if the air had turned to water.

"Carl!" The other skinhead exclaimed before lunging at Dante, murder in his eyes. "You're a dead man!"

Anyone could've told that Dante was a master in unarmed combat but brainpower didn't seem to be this guy's forte. Dante opted to utilise an unorthodox (not to mention cheap) but highly effective move. He'd never swallowed the whisky so when the thug was practically on top of him Dante spat it out, getting him in the face. The thug staggered backwards, cursing as the fiery liquid burned his eyes. Dante seized his knife arm and broke four fingers with one twist. Needless to say, the thug dropped his knife but Dante wasn't finished and he yanked the thug forwards by the arm and landed a right cross. It was a nasty punch but not the jawbreaker Dante could've thrown if he really wanted to so he smacked the thugs head against the concrete bus stop. He looked to the bearded guy.

"Want some of that?" He said aggressively, nodding at the thugs. "Come at me and you'll get it."

"So you know some fancy moves," The bearded guy observed. "Got any that'll stop one of these?" He slid a sawn-off shotgun out of his jacket.

"It's funny you should ask that." Dante said as he tossed his rucksack and wallet at the bearded man's feet.

"This is a twelve gauge." The bearded man said conversationally. "That means one shot will blast you to smithereens."

"I know what a twelve gauge is." Dante replied. "You see, I happen to know a bit about guns myself." Before the bearded guy could react Dante had whipped out one of his own weapons.

The MAC10 was a submachine gun used sparingly by Galbadian Special Forces in the jungles of Southern Esthar during the First Sorceress War. It wasn't very popular due to its weight, as it was made entirely from steel stampings and extreme rate of fire but Dante knew if you had the strength to control it, it could be deadly. He cocked it to show he meant business.

"Put your weapon down." The guy with the beard was still wallowing under the delusion that he had the upper hand.

"What so you can shoot me yourself?" Dante snorted. "Please. I may not be a cold hearted killer but I'm smart enough to know that I may have to turn you into Swiss cheese sometime in the near future. You've got a sawn off shotgun. It's double barrelled, so you're not entirely incompetent. This however…" He indicated the MAC10. "…has a rate of fire second to none. Two shotgun shells are nothing to eleven hundred rounds a minute."

The bearded guy was too proud to run but Dante couldn't recall seeing anyone about face and walk away that quickly. Dante gathered up his rucksack and wallet as the bus approached.

* * *

The man in the infirmary was facing away from the door when Quistis entered and the two bullet wounds on his back were visible, as were several other scars. He'd clearly had a less than easy life but Quistis guessed he could probably look after himself when he was at full strength. The bullet wounds were probably the result of a surprise attack or the act of a coward.

"Hi," She said as she walked in. "My name is Quistis Trepe. I was wondering if you're up to answering a few questions."

"I guess so." The man murmured as he rolled over to face her, grunting in the pain from his back. "What would you like to know?"

"Let's start from the top." Quistis pulled out a notepad and a pen. "Do you have a name?"

"I'm Mika Skyle." The man replied evenly before the light of understanding crossed his face. "You're the Trepe at the heart of the big hoo-hah four years ago right?"

"That's me," Quistis nodded before becoming more business-like. "But for now we're talking about you. How old are you?"

"I'm twenty years old I think." Mika replied. "I don't know exactly how old in months and weeks but in the grand scheme of things my birthdays don't mean that much. I've got no one to give me presents or a cake."

"Sounds very lonely." Quistis observed finding herself feeling rather sorry for Mika. The deep seated, haunted look in his eyes and the very evident pain he was in were not helping.

"I adjusted." Mika shrugged before grunting in pain as the movement aggravated the bullet wounds. "Bad move."

"Would you like me to call the Doctor to give you some morphine for the pain?" Quistis asked.

"I'll be fine." Mika said firmly before scrutinising Quistis closely. "Have you ever been shot?"

"I wouldn't use the word shot." Quistis answered. "I shouldn't really tell you this but we were attempting to infiltrate a terrorist cell in Dollet. A sniper shot me in the leg, but he clearly wasn't the best sniper in the world. He shot me through and through, nowhere near the bone or the femoral artery. If it had been, I wouldn't be here talking to you."

"A lot of people think it's okay to be shot in the extremities," Mika nodded. "From films I guess, but what the film industry doesn't tell you if you can be dead inside three minutes if the bullet severs an artery."

"You can be dead in less if you're shot twice in the back." Quistis said. "Do you have any family we can tell you're alive and as well as can be expected. Parents, siblings?"

"Both my parents and my sister are six feet under." Mika said bluntly.

"Oh I'm sorry to bring it up," Quistis said sounding genuinely sympathetic. "But it's my job."

"I was four years old." Mika replied, guessing that he'd shocked Quistis by imparting the information too casually. "I can barely remember them. I do have a brother, but I doubt you'll be able to find him if he doesn't want to be found and it's probably better if you don't contact him. We're not close."

"Okay," Quistis nodded as she took notes. "Can I ask why you turned up here of all pieces."

"Here's the funny part." Mika answered. "My brother and I aren't close but I was looking for him. He's an idiot bit he's still my brother so I'm obligated or something. He vanished without a trace a few months ago."

"Well I can't think of anyone here by the name of Skyle but I'll have to check." Quistis said. "Why here though?"

"Dante is far from peaceable." Mika explained. "It's a bit wearing to tell the truth. If I was him I'd head for somewhere that his talents for violence and mayhem would be appreciated. Here for example."

"Well I'll check through our cadets but I'm not hopeful." Quistis said with another sympathetic smile.

"Don't bother." Mika replied. "You'd know if he was here believe me. In addition to not being peaceable he does like to go for the grand effect."

"That bodes well." Quistis murmured, mindful of a certain other warmonger who'd held a great love for violence and mixing it up. "Okay now for the important question. Do you know who shot you?"

"Afraid not." Mika shook his head. "I've rubbed the odd person up in my life but who hasn't? None of them struck me as the murderous type."

"Okay," Quistis began warily. "Now I'm not one to jump to any conclusions but is it possible that your brother…"

"Shot me?" Mika completed. "Very unlikely, in the sense that it's almost impossible. He's impulsive, violent and has a chip on his shoulder a mile wide but he's never killed anyone without a good reason. If he did shoot me, he'd consider the fact that I'm not dead a personal low point."

"You're not dead that's true." Quistis continued. "This brings me to my next question. You were quite obviously shot from behind. I believe you were trying to tell me you were ambushed when you turned up. The locations of your wounds weren't exactly the best place to shoot someone if you were trying to kill them. Is it possible that someone was trying to send a message?"

"If they were trying to send a message I doubt it was to me." Mika mused. "I think the message would be directed at you. Someone playing games, trying to tell you they can get away with attempted murder on your doorstep."

"Good point." Quistis conceded. "I tell you what, I'll leave you to concentrate on recovering. If you need anything, just push the button at your bedside. I'll have two orderlies outside you're room."

"It's okay," Mika waved a hand dismissively. "I don't need a babysitter."

"Garden policy." Quistis returned evenly. "Sorry."

* * *

"So," Squall said, tossing a memo aside and facing Quistis over his desk. "What did you get out of him."

"He certainly talked a lot." Quistis explained. "Just not about the right things. He calls himself Mika Skyle. For some reason he doesn't celebrate his birthday but he guesses he's about twenty years old."

"Does he have any family?" Squall asked. "We have to find out who his next of kin is so we can inform them."

"He mentioned that his parents and sister died when he was very little," Quistis answered. "But he did mention a brother. His name is apparently Dante and based on what Mika was saying he sounded a lot like Seifer, so yay for us. Dante allegedly disappeared a few months ago and Mika's been looking for him. That's how he came here."

"Why here?" Squall asked.

"The way Mika tells it Dante's a born warmonger and a borderline psychopath." Quistis explained. "He figures that Dante would set up shop in some sort of military establishment. He also said that if Dante was here, we'd know it."

"He sounds like a barrel of laughs." Squall laughed humourlessly. "I suppose you brought up the possibility of the brother pulling the trigger."

"I did but Mika didn't think so and I trust him." Quistis said before noticing the subtle but definite change on Squall's face. "What?"

"It's not that I don't trust your instincts Quistis," Squall said cautiously. "But god knows how much medication the Doctors put him on, and he suffered some pretty serious trauma. How can you be sure he knows what he's saying. I'm not saying he's a liar but you've got to remember the golden rule; hope for the best, plan for the worse."

"I think he's solid." Quistis said sounding a tad put out. "I brought up the whole possibility of someone trying to send a message and his reply convinced me that his mental state was pretty together."

"Which was?" Squall demanded.

"He didn't think anyone was trying to send _him _a message." Quistis explained. "He thinks that someone might be trying to send us a message, play some games showing us that they can get away with attempted murder on our doorstep."

"It kills me to admit this, but that isn't a bad theory." Squall nodded reluctantly. "I think we can safely say who our prime suspect is."

"Gee, I wonder who that could be." Quistis carped, pretending to think about it. "Seifer Almasy right?"

"You don't think it could be him?" Squall challenged cantankerously. "We're most definitely people Seifer would leap at the chance to mess with."

"I am aware of the irony, seeing as I was all for accusing Seifer about the sniper attack on Caraway," Quistis countered, unwilling to back down. "But it's too low profile for Seifer."

"That is ironic." Squall mused.

"There are plenty of other suspects." Quistis replied stubbornly. "The brother for starters. I think we should also check CCTV for anything odd happening on the night he turned up." She noticed Squall's face. "What?"

"Just a second." Squall snatched up his phone and dialled for the archives. "I want everything you can get me on Swift Obsidian from as many different sources as possible on my desk first thing tomorrow. I don't have time to explain, just do it!"

"Squall what the hell is going on?" Quistis demanded.

Squall have Quistis a quick rundown of his encounter with Swift, putting particular emphasis on Swift's whole spiel about the best swordsmen in the world and his extraordinary skills. Quistis face grew graver and graver.

"If this guy is everything you say we could end up in serious trouble." She said. "He could be difficult to apprehend, but I think it's fair to say we need to talk to him again. If nothing else he could've witnessed the attack on Mika."

* * *

It was the dead of night when Mika was awakened by the sound of his door opening and flipped his lamp on before turning to face his visitor. He couldn't have been more shocked if he'd been connected to the Balamb Garden Electrical Grid during a thunderstorm. Standing before him, his face partially hidden in shadow was the last person Mika expected to see, and someone who wasn't particularly high on his list of people he wanted to see.

His visitor was about six feet tall with medium length dark brown hair and hazel eyes that scared Mika more than a bunker full of intercontinental ballistic missiles. The visitor was simply staring down at him impassively and it was quite a while before Mika found his voice

"Dante,"

"Hello brother." Dante replied.

* * *

**Author Commentary: I am so sorry about the delay with this chapter. I just did not want to be written. As always you reserve the right to pelt me with fruits and various meats if you can find me, which I doubt. You may think things are beginning to spiral out of control but trust me you haven't seen anything yet. I've based the character of Mika off a number of people and I will build on his relationship with Quistis. That said I'm not sure if it'll become romantic in anyway but while Quistis may have been doing her utmost to crown herself the Ice Queen throughout the game she is still human and humans need some form of companionship. If you're hoping to see more of Rinoa, Zell, Selphie and Irvine they should turn up in the next chapter or so along with a few other original characters I've decided to dub "the next generation". Essentially a sort of secondary story will focus on the trials and tribulation of a group of new SeeD cadets. You may have picked up of a couple of allusion to Rinoa being a cadet as well. It seems to me that training as a SeeD was a perfectly believable course of action for her following the game. If you're hoping to see her use the Combine limit break, you'll be disappointed because I always hated that feature for reasons I will not go into here. If you're really interested I may post a rant on my profile page in the future. The days of Combine are gone. Here come the days of Angel Wing. As ever thanks to my reviewer Dee and a special welcome back to Bebedora. Yes you were right this is an incarnation of Whirlwind. As always I would love a review, especially constructive criticism and I invite you all to guess who the mystery sniper is.**

**~Ally Todd**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: Birthday**

The doors to the canteen in Balamb Garden flew open and SeeD's unconventional magic specialist Selphie Tilmitt hared towards her friends table in the neurotic, overexcited mood that was her general state of existence. As she sat down, positively quivering with excitement Zell, Irvine and Rinoa exchanged looks.

"Okay I'm going in." Irvine drawled before leaning forward. "That look means you've had an idea Selphie, so be a good girl and share with us."

"You guys have to clear your calendar for Friday night." Selphie declared cheerfully. "We have to celebrate."

"Why Friday?" Zell enquired evenly. "Quistis' birthday is tomorrow, which is a Tuesday. You know how the days of the week work right?"

"Yes but Friday's the most social night of the week." Selphie persisted, unwilling to give up what she had decided was the best idea since sliced bread. "We have to take Quistis out to a club for her twenty second!"

"You know Quistis." Rinoa replied warily. "She doesn't want a big fuss. She'll probably just go for a quiet night in with a glass of Chablis and a Sex in the City box set."

"Poppycock!" Selphie exclaimed. "Quistis has been working so hard recently. She needs some rest and recuperation, or failing that much dancing and alcohol. We are her friends so we are honour bound to make sure she has fun!"

"Maybe it's the kick to the head I took in the dojo yesterday talking," Zell started hesitantly. "But some of that makes sense."

"You see!" Selphie exclaimed with a flamboyant gesture at the brawler. "Even Zell knows we should do it."

"And an impulsive, punch first, ask questions later, alpha male adrenaline junkie is a man you can trust." Rinoa replied exchanging a mischievous glance with Irvine. Zell looked scandalized.

"Rin!" He exclaimed, pulling an exaggeratedly woeful expression. "I'm shocked you would say that! Shocked, and deeply and sorely wounded. I'm wounded I tell you."

"I cannot believe I'm saying this," Irvine spoke up over Zell's Shakespeare worthy expressions of woe. "But I think Zell and Selphie are right."

"You know, just for once I wish you would support me and now I realise you were I'm embarrassed so I'm going to get back to the point." Selphie proclaimed. "We need fun. Hey, where's Squall?"

"Hibernating in his bat cave." Rinoa said. "He's been working on something for days and good luck getting anything out of him."

"There you go!" Selphie shouted, turning heads. "We've been running ourselves into the ground recently. We need a night of much needed fun. Cid and Xu can hold down the fort for one night!"

"When you get Squall and Quistis to believe that give me a call." Rinoa shrugged. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing but Quistis isn't exactly a party animal at the best of times."

"That's where the alcohol comes in." Selphie protested. "It loosens you up and you let your inhibitions go."

"That's a good point." Zell backed Selphie up before his blue eyes misted over with nostalgia. "I remember the first time Seifer got drunk. He was running around nude trying to make out with street furniture and then he fell into a drainage channel and broke his wrist. Good times."

"Well hopefully he won't show up," Rinoa grunted. "But do you think getting Quistis wasted is the best way for her to celebrate her birthday?"

"Absolutely!" Selphie bellowed excitably. "Rin, you have to convince Squall to come along! Do whatever it takes. Irvy, Zell, find a decent club in Balamb. I'll take care of Quistis." She jumped up and sped off. Zell, Irvine and Rinoa laughed. There was no other reaction.

"Nutter." Zell spluttered, shaking his head.

"I eludes me," Irvine concurred. "What planet that girl lives on."

* * *

Squall and Quistis were sitting on Squall's office floor, surrounded by file folders and empty takeaway containers. Squall let out a growl of frustration and tossed another file aside, giving it up as a bad job.

"This is pointless!" He raged. "There have been a lot of people in history known as Swift Obsidian and there's no way to narrow this down. The illustrations are never clear enough."

"These things take time." Quistis said soothingly though she privately thought Squall had a point. "We'll figure it out. You never know, maybe we're galloping off in the wrong direction. Maybe this guy had nothing to do with Mika."

"Maybe but unless Mika tell us what he's hiding it's all we've got." Squall muttered before catching the reproachful look Quistis was shooting at him. "So I don't trust him. Don't even tell me that you do? You hardly know the guy."

"I wouldn't say I trust him." Quistis said diplomatically. "That said I think he's told us everything he knows. Can't you just go with my instincts on this? I don't trust him, but I've learnt its best not to trust anyone. My abiding feeling is that he's sound but you're right. We haven't seen anything to back that up yet."

"This is pointless!" Squall decided, throwing another folder at his desk. It missed altogether and flew out the open window.

"You know you're getting that right?" Quistis said with a smile. "But you're right; this guy is not in the system."

"That bodes well." Squall sighed theatrically. "I thought if someone wasn't in our archives they didn't exist."

"Well there is one reasonable explanation and two that, if I'm being honest are a tad farfetched." Quistis said. "He could be using Swift Obsidian as a pseudonym."

"And the farfetched ones?" Squall asked.

"Well we could have a dozen Swift Obsidians running around." Quistis answered leafing through her files. "Oh and judging by the dates on the little information we have, he's got to be at least five hundred years old."

"Oh great." Squall growled murderously before pulling a bottle of Jack Daniels out of his desk and pouring a glass. "I thought we were done with all these time travelling high jinks."

"Who said time travel?" Quistis asked him, trying to sound serious. The smile on her face pretty much gave her away. "Maybe he's looked after himself."

"Maybe but half a millennium is a bit farfetched." Squall said, right before there was a knock on his door. "Come."

The door entered and Mika entered, having clearly won the argument he'd been having with Doctor Kadowaki about wearing a hospital gown. He was barefoot and dressed in a pair of drawstring trousers and an unbuttoned shirt. He raised a hand.

"Hello all," He chirped before he looked over the files and takeaway containers with a grimace "Whoa. You're cleaners are on strike right?"

"I hope you didn't come all the way up here to criticise my housekeeping." Squall replied neutrally.

"Mika why are you out of hospital?" Quistis asked. "Is your back not still a bit sore?"

"It was hurting like a royal bitch." Mika admitted. "So the Doc gave me some morphine and now I feel nothing at all. Observe." He slugged himself hard across the face. He shook his head until his eyes refocused. "Anyhow we have to talk."

"What about?" Squall asked in what Quistis thought was an overly guarded tone of voice.

"Well seeing as you ask," Mika installed himself in Squall's computer chair and revolved to face them, propping his feet up on the desk. "I had a visitor in the dead of night a few nights ago. Who was that visitor you ask? I'll give you a hint. Begins with D, ends in ante."

"Dante?" Squall said blankly before a synapse fired in his brain. "That's the brother right?"

"The dawn of understanding." Mika laughed, applauding dryly.

"Are you sure it was him?" Quistis asked. "Your brother who has been missing for a not inconsiderable amount of time, turning up in the very place you were looking for him right before you were shot twice in the back? The odds on that must be very long."

"I doubt he was there by chance." Mika replied. "He practically gave me a heart attack and he wasn't there to drop off a bunch of grapes of flowers."

"What did he want exactly?" Squall asked. "I don't believe he happened by just to say hi?"

"I don't believe that either." Mika grimaced. "I wake up and there he is, large as really annoying life. He just says "hello brother" and then he's off. He always had a habit of materialising nowhere but he's certainly got a damn sight better."

"How the hell did he get in here, avoid security, not to mention avoid the orderlies that were right outside your door?" Squall muttered.

"I have no idea." Mika answered. "He's a man of many talents my brother but I could certainly live without him turning up like that. I'm not sure my heart could take it."

"We could double your guard." Quistis suggested. "Tighten up security and give the guards a description."

"Won't work." Mika shook his head. "I know my brother and I know that he's extremely committed and he has a number of very specific talents. If he wants in he'll get in. It's just a matter of time."

"I think you're underestimating the standards we train our security to." Squall countered.

"I think _you're _underestimating what Dante is capable of Commander," Mika shot back, placing a lot of sarcastic emphasis on the last word. "He's got my attention now, so we should wait and see what he does next. If he shows up, I'll talk to him but I'd seriously advise against confronting him. The only person who can do that is me. Well me and Swift Obsidian but what are the chances of him happening by?"

"I think you should go back to the infirmary," Squall suggested before what Mika had said hit him. "Wait a second what did you say?"

"I'd advise against confronting Dante?" Mika asked, nonplussed.

"After that." Squall said urgently. "Did you say you knew a guy named Swift Obsidian?"

"Unfortunately." Mika replied distastefully. "What has dear old Swift done to deserve your attentions?"

"He was in here the night you turned up." Squall answered. "He spun my head a little and we believe he could've witnessed your shooting if he didn't do it himself."

"A gun is not Swift's style." Mika replied. "I really shouldn't tell you this, but you don't want to mess with him. I don't know all the facts but I know he's extremely dangerous and not a fan of easy death. The person you really need to ask about Swift would be Dante."

"Is there anything else you know about him?" Quistis pressed. "The fact that you described your knowledge of Swift as unfortunate suggests some sort of personal history. Who is he?"

"Your worst nightmare." Mika replied and both Squall and Quistis could tell he was deadly serious. "My best advice when it comes to that guy, or anyone by the name Obsidian is get the hell out of their way and stay there."

* * *

In spite of the most recent developments and their determination to pry more details about Swift out of Mika, Squall and Quistis finally succumbed to Rinoa and Selphie's instance that they should go to a nightclub in Balamb to celebrate Quistis' twenty second birthday the following Friday. Truth be told, Squall had simply decided to come just to shut Rinoa up. On the other side of the scales, Quistis though a little rest and recuperation would do everyone a little good, but a professional torturer would be hard put to get her to admit it.

Selphie had appointed herself "birthday coordinator" and she'd picked out Quistis' clothes and makeup and the blond had to admit Selphie had done a bang up job. She was barely recognisable but it was most definitely a good change. She'd gone with peach lip gloss and silver eye shadow that accented her bright blue eyes. She'd teamed a low cut black shirt with a denim jacket and ivory mini skirt, finished off with a pair of pointed knee high boots. When she reached the parking lot she found all her friends waiting for her. Squall and Zell were both astride motorcycles while Irvine had "commandeered" a black Mercedes limousine that Selphie and Rinoa were leaning against. The men were all wearing shirts and jeans (Irvine having flatly refused to dispense with his black Stetson). Selphie was dressed in a halter top an eye watering shade of pink and a black miniskirt while Rinoa had simply gone for a simple black knee length dress.

"You look brilliant Quistis." The sorceress enthused. "You'll blow any guys head off at the neck looking like that. Good job Selphie."

"I should consider a job as a stylist one of these days." Selphie preened outrageously. "I've clearly got an eye for it."

"Can we get this over with?" Squall grumped as he tossed a crash helmet to Zell and pulled his own on.

The ride to the club was uneventful apart from Zell successfully goading Squall into a competition to see who could ride a wheelie the longest. The brawler was still gloating as they reached the club. Irvine called someone from Garden to take their vehicles back as Balamb was famous for its vicious definition of drink driving. They queued outside the club while a man wearing a visored crash helmet roared past on a Minsk motorcycle, an old but notoriously reliable and durable model, frequently seen mounted with terrorists wielding AK-47's and rocket propelled grenade launchers. This particular rider was not a terrorist, but he was armed with a MAC10 machine pistol. He hopped off, stowed his helmet and weapon under the seat and queued up outside the club, a few people between him and some of Balamb Garden's finest.

When they got into the club Selphie immediately dragged Irvine off to dance. Rinoa and Squall quickly followed, Squall wearing a face like utter thunder, leaving Zell and Quistis by themselves.

"So birthday girl," The brawler said as he easily shouldered his way towards the bar. "What can I get you?"

"What cocktails do they do?" Quistis asked, reaching out and grabbing a list from the bar. Nothing particularly caught her fancy so she simply decided on a pint of Fosters and pulled out her purse.

"No, no, no." Zell wagged his finger at her. "It's your birthday therefore we pay for your drinks. Before you even start, it's not open for discussion. I'll get a couple of tequila shots as well."

"So," Zell said as he drained his shot glass followed by a third of his pint. "What's it like being twenty two?"

"It's okay I guess." Quistis shrugged noncommittally. "It's not much different from twenty one I guess. You know when Cid wished me a happy birthday he made some very disturbing allusions to the possibility of settling down and building a family."

"Really?" Zell digested this. "Have you had a thought about who might fit the bill for daddy?"

"I'm trying not to." Quistis replied. "I don't know about you, but I love what we do. I'm a professional soldier and when I signed my life away on that dotted line I meant it. I know it'll end eventually but once I leave I'll have to be pushed. Is that stupid?"

"No I get it." Zell nodded understandingly. "You're married to the job. You don't need any romance because you've got us."

"Didn't stop Squall and Rinoa, or Selphie and Irvine." Quistis countered. "Still, why are we talking about this? Plenty of time for that later."

"Maybe, but maybe not." Zell said sagely. "You want to hear my philosophy. Carpe diem."

"Fish of the day?" Quistis enquired uncomprehendingly.

"Carpe, not carp." Zell clarified patiently. "Who was it who said it's better to have loved and lost than never loved at all? My point is, carpe diem is Latin for seize the day. Most people might say it's not a good idea to get attached to people in our line of work but I don't think that. Seize the day because tomorrow you might be dead."

"I think it was Tennyson, the poet." Quistis said before elaborating of Zell's blank look. "Who said the loved and lost thing? I think it was Tennyson."

Before Zell could reply he felt something cold trickle down his back. Evidently Quistis had felt it to and they both turned in their seats to see a bunch of guys laughing and jostling while two others rolled around on the floor in a mock wrestling match. Drinks were being thrown everywhere. It quickly occurred to Quistis who she was drinking with and she turned to Zell only to see it was too late. The brawlers face was turning slowly scarlet as if his head was filling with boiling water. Quistis briefly contemplated trying to calm him down but she had been hit by the drinks as well and she decided the troublemakers deserved a little punishment.

"Are you two retards or something?" Zell barked, exploding out of his chair and facing the guys off. "I'm bloody soaked."

"It was an accident." A morbidly obese specimen in a Balamb Raiders football shirt with a wispy teenage beard sneered. "But we didn't ask you to sit behind us. You can move."

"Why should we move?" Zell shouted. "We shouldn't have to just because you want to roll around the floor with your boyfriend."

"Are you calling me a queer?" The beard demanded poking Zell in the chest with his finger. Zell was tempted to tell the guy where to get off and break the finger for good measure but before he could do either Quistis stepped in.

"Leave it Zell," She said quietly but firmly. "It's not worth getting upset over the likes of him."

Zell relaxed and allowed Quistis to pull him back but as he turned away a clumsy punch glanced across his head. The beard had fifteen centimetres and five stone on Zell so he never expected what happened next. Zell struck backwards with an elbow following it up with a roundhouse kick that nailed the guy I the kidneys, knocking him sideways with enough force to put him out of the fight immediately. The guy's cohorts roared in outrage and Zell realised that maybe violence wasn't always the best course of action. He'd just instigated a bar fight with maybe a dozen guys who were much larger than them. There were only two people in the world better versed in martial arts than Zell and he was related to one. The other was a hermit who lived on an island in Centra and spent his days meditating and beating up palm trees. Despite this, Zell wasn't Superman. He needn't have worried though, because his friends were on their way.

Irvine noticed one guy advancing on Zell's blindside, his hand going for a weapon of some kind so he committed to a charging movement. They both crashed over the bar swearing loudly. Irvine was up first and he hit the guy twice in the face before catching beer glass Rinoa had thrown to him and smacking the bastard over the head with it. He fell like an axed tree.

Selphie had always had a gift for lifting objects several times her own body weight and she demonstrated it now as two guys charged at her. She seized them by the lapels and rolled onto her back, using their own momentum threw them headfirst into the nearest wall. One was out cold and Rinoa sent the other to slumber land by clapping him on the temples.

"Messing with my friends, bad move!" Squall snarled as he thundered forwards. His shoulder impacted solidly with another guys guts and he lifted him bodily before slamming him hard onto a table that broke under his weight. One thug hit Squall over the head with a bottle, but Squall kicked him in the chest before half slamming, half throwing him head first into the bar. The thug slid unconscious to the floor. It was at that point the bouncers stepped in.

"Hey, hey Eddie!" Zell protested, raising his hands in a gesture of supplication. "It was self-defence, they attacked us."

"Yeah I know," Eddie said as he hauled the semi-conscious bearded guy to his feet. "I saw the whole thing."

"Wait you saw?" Irvine looked slightly uneasy as you'd be hard put to describe his participation as self-defence.

"Hey it caught us by surprise." Eddie explained. "I mean who'd be crazy enough to try and take you guys out?"

The troublemakers were marched outside, aside from Irvine's victim and Squall's first who were headed to the hospital. The bouncers had allowed them to stay on the condition that there would be no more violence. It was just coming up on midnight when Selphie leaned over and whispered in the DJ's ear.

"This is for Quistis," The DJ said into his microphone. "Happy twenty second birthday from Squall, Rinoa, Zell, Selphie and Irvine."

"Okay Quistis," Irvine grinned roguishly as the opening bars of "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes crashed out of the speakers. "You have to dance now."

"I'm really going to regret this." Quistis muttered as she allowed Irvine to take her out onto the floor. She wouldn't admit it but the music was a good choice as her favourite band was the White Stripes. It also did nothing to alleviate Quistis' suspicions that Selphie could read minds.

The night wound on and Quistis elected to just watch the others dance as opposed to join in. It wasn't that she didn't like to have fun; she just wasn't one for dancing. All in all she was surprised Squall had been on the floor as much as he had because maybe he wasn't trying to perfect the brooding block of wood mystique any more but he wasn't exactly the most unencumbered man ever. It was at this point that Quistis felt a prickling sensation on the back of her neck. Someone was watching her.

She looked around but could see no one aside from a couple of middle aged men leering lecherously as they eyed her exposed legs. Quistis wasn't unduly worried as she knew she could knock them into next week without tensing a muscle if they tried something. The sensation refused to go away and Quistis looked around again, trying to identify the source. Then she saw him.

Across the dance floor, sitting by himself at a table was a young man who was pointedly ignoring the mini-skirted girls dancing provocatively in front of him. His hazel eyes were instead pinned on her.

He was pretty good looking Quistis admitted to herself. He was dressed entirely in black, jeans, shirt and leather jacket. He had medium length dark brown hair and a slender but strong looking build. His face was familiar but Quistis couldn't place it. He evidently noticed her looking back and smiled before tipping a glass of whisky at her as if to say; "here's to you".

_Is he flirting with me? _Quistis wondered. Truthfully, there was only one way to find out and hey, it was her birthday. Maybe it was time to do something unexpected. She finished her drink and decided to go for it. She cut across the dance floor heading for him. She was momentarily delayed by a line of drunks doing the conga and once they'd passed the guy had disappeared. Quistis felt a small pang of disappointment as she looked around for him. She quickly dismissed it. Maybe it was just the alcohol.

After kicking out time, Squall, Rinoa, Zell, Selphie and a paralytic Irvine all piled into a taxi. Unfortunately Irvine had to be laid down across the back seats so Quistis was left to get her own taxi.

"One of us can wait with you Quis," Selphie said as she practically forced a bundle of money into Quistis' hand.

"It doesn't matter." Quistis insisted before grimacing as Irvine brought up his alcohol intake violently, having the good sense to aim at the gutter and miss the taxi's upholstery. "Besides, I think you've got your own problems to worry about."

Quistis laughed as the taxi headed off before she turned to find her own and collided with the chest of the guy from inside. She barely supressed a scream of shock.

"Jesus Christ," She gasped irritably. "Lurk much?"

"I wasn't lurking." He said bluntly, looking her over appreciatively. "I was standing about."

"Sorry," Quistis sighed. "It's been a long night and besides, I was hoping to see you again."

"I know." A frankly seductive smile spread across his handsome features like oil on water.

"Cocky much?" Quistis carped, though inwardly she found herself impressed by the guy's confidence.

"Very much." He said quietly as he leant forwards brazenly and stared into her eyes.

"I'm Quistis." Quistis stammered, finding herself borderline mesmerized by his gaze. The smirk on his features told her that he was well aware of the effect he was having so Quistis forced herself to look away. "Do you have a name?"

"Dante," He replied, taking her hand and gently kissing it. A clearer mind than Quistis' at that point might've been shocked by the sudden appearance of someone who was rapidly becoming very important to Balamb Gardens interests but Quistis was flustered and not entirely sober.

* * *

As if climbing a long, dark staircase Quistis finally regained consciousness in her dorm room. She felt a mild hangover exercising its visitation rights so she leaned over to her bedside table, noting as she did so that she was naked as the day she was born under the covers. She swallowed a couple of painkillers with a mouthful of water and then sat up. As she did so however her hand hit something. She looked over and got such a shock the nearly fell out of bed.

Lying next to her, currently dead to the world and clearly as naked was the guy from the nightclub Dante, and it was only now she realised who exactly he could be. The possibility of him being Mika's missing brother aside Quistis knew that this was bad. She fell back onto her pillows with a groan. Bringing civilians into Garden was controlled very tightly and Quistis was fairly sure that she'd trampled over at least ten unbreakable rules.

When Squall found out he'd crucify her.

* * *

**Author Commentary: Oh dearie me Quistis what have you done now? I do enjoy writing Quistis making mistakes because let's face it she is human. I characterised Dante as a sort of cross between Damon Salvatore and Steve Stifler. He's handsome but he's well aware of it and he's not shy of using his charm to get what he wants. I understand a lot of people might hate him and given what he's going to be getting up to in the next few chapters I can't blame you. However I implore you, don't write him off out of hand. There are other sides to his personality that come out with the right people, and to say the very least he and Quistis' don't play particularly well against each other. As for Mika his character will be featured considerably in the next few chapters and a little bit more of his backstory and his relationship with Dante will be addressed. I enjoyed the bar fight sequence, but believe me that's pretty tame compared to what's coming up. I can't say too much but believe me there will be blood, not to mention bone, gristle and every other part of the fragile human anatomy in copious amounts and if you're very lucky you'll get to see what Swift is capable of. As ever thanks and hugs go out to my reviewers Dee and Bebedora. I love you guys and I'd appreciate a review beyond words, even if it is venomous death threats from Quall and Seiftis fans. Thank you so much for your continued support. I'd also like to dedicate this chapter to ther servicemen and women who gave their lives in both World Wars in particular Pilot Offiver Victor Lowosn of the Royal Air Force (my maternal great uncle).**

**~Ally Todd **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five: Blood Red Tape**

Quistis forced her gaze away from Dante and scanned the room for her dressing gown. It was hanging by the door so she quickly dashed across the room and pulled it on in a bid to reveal as little of her as possible to Dante should he wake up. In what was probably irony's little joke she turned back to the bed to see Dante with his eyes wide open.

"I hate to break it to you Quistis," He stated with a provocative smirk. "But I've seen it all before."

"Don't talk to me." Quistis snapped as she started to pace anxiously twisting her fingers together. "I am trying to think what I am going to do."

"What's the problem?" Dante enquired as he partially sat up and put his hands behind his head looking immensely pleased with himself. "I'm sure if we work together we can figure it out. Isn't that what couples do?"

"We're not a couple." If Quistis was hoping to wound Dante she was in for a disappointment. "Do you have any idea how much red tape I've created by bringing you here, let alone having sex with you?"

"Quite a lot I'd imagine." Dante replied noncommittally as he stretched and picked Quistis' teddy bear off the floor and examining it interestedly.

"A mountain of the stuff Dante," Quistis said, striding over and plucking the teddy bear from his hands. "A mountain."

"I think I ought to tell you my second name." Dante said as he crawled out of bed and started dressing himself. "It's Skyle. That means I am in fact the estranged brother of Mika Skyle, the man who is currently in your infirmary."

"I don't suppose you'd like to tell me how you managed to get into the infirmary and not leave a trace on the CCTV footage?" Quistis demanded.

"Sorry, trade secret." Dante bit off as he buckled his belt. "My point is, I'm guessing that Mika told you about my little late night visit, ergo you'd want to talk to me. So instead of bringing a civilian into Garden and allowing him to blow your mind you've brought in a valuable source of intelligence and I don't think you'll be in too much trouble as long as you're economical with the truth."

"Meaning?" Quistis raised an eyebrow.

"Let's just say you ran into me last night." Dante went on. "You might want to gloss over how you knew it was me but you'll also say I wasn't particularly forthcoming with the truth. You brought me back here and elected to pump me for information. The whole femme fatale routine, it's the oldest trick in the book but it's also very effective."

"So let me get this straight." Quistis spat distastefully. "As long as I have sex with you whenever you want you'll tell us what we need to know."

"Heavens no." Dante laughed. "I've had my fill for now. I'll happily tell you what I believe you've earned. Trust me, it's a lot because I can't remember the last time I had sex that good and even if I do say so myself I've had plenty."

"Well I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Quistis said acidly. "Because it won't happen again."

"Well that sort of makes you a tease doesn't it." Dante hurled back. "You get a fellows motor running and bam! Crown yourself the Ice Queen. Shame on you. I feel so used."

"Don't flatter yourself." Quistis said before pointing to the door. "Can you leave while I shower?"

"I need a shower as well." Dante said. "Why don't we economise the limited resources of water and take one together."

"In your dreams." Quistis said before pointing to her door. "There are communal showers at the end of the hall."

"I'm pretty sure you'd like it." Dante grinned hut headed for the door all the same. He opened the door and came to a halt. "I think you've got an admirer. Other than yours truly, though I like to think of me as your sex poodle." He turned around and held up a bouquet of twelve red roses still in its fancy wrapper.

"Who are they from?" Quistis asked.

"There's a card." Dante opened it with a flourish and read it aloud. "Dear Quistis, happy birthday from M. I wonder who that could possibly be?"

"How am I supposed to know?" Quistis demanded. "It could stand for any name. It could be Michael, Marcus, Mason or…"

"Mika?" Dante suggested before handing the roses to Quistis and waving jauntily before vacating. Quistis set the flowers on her bedside before allowing herself a small smile. Who would've thought of Mika as the sentimental flower giving type? She'd have to thank him. He was clearly a far superior gentleman than his brother.

Quistis sighed as he threw off her dressing gown and stepped into her en-suite shower and turned the knob. How could she have been so stupid to sleep with a guy she barely knew? Alcohol affected peoples judgement but Quistis hadn't been nearly drunk enough to make a mistake of that magnitude so there must have been another reason. He was clearly handsome and charming but Quistis didn't want to think she was just some giddy schoolgirl with a crush. She was one of the world's foremost Blue Mages for heaven's sake! She stepped under the cascade, hoping above all else that the hot water would wash away her problems.

She wondered about how Squall would react to the news. Dante's idea of being economical with the truth might dissuade him from suspending her on the spot and pumping Dante full of drugs to wipe his memory of the previous night but Quistis doubted he'd be dancing a jig. Still, Mika had mentioned that Dante might know a thing or two about Swift so Squall would hopefully see that Quistis had acted with the greater good in mind.

* * *

"You did what?" Squall roared, purple in the face as he faced Quistis over his desk. Quistis however made a living from not being easily rattled.

"What I had to." Quistis replied evenly. "If this guy has any information we need to know isn't it part of our job by getting it out of him by any means necessary."

"We have truth serum and facilities for torture!" Squall howled. "What were you thinking? God only know where he's been!"

"There is such a thing as contraception Squall." Quistis replied. "If this wasn't work related you wouldn't even know because, and I cannot stress this enough, what I do with my personal life is none of your business."

"I think Quistis acted quite admirably." Cid said from the back of the room. "She's right Squall. If this Dante fellow has any information we could use then we have to do everything we can to get it. Maybe Quistis' methods were a little unconventional but…"

"Unconventional?" Squall bawled before composing himself. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't suspend you from your duties with immediate effect?"

"We've been through this Squall." Quistis announced. "I was getting the job done. Nowhere in the Garden Code does it say we can't use our assets, for lack of a better term, to pump someone for information. You can't suspend me and you know it."

There was suddenly a frantic knocking on the door and Zell dashed in without even waiting to be called.

"Turn on the news channel on the TV." He said urgently. "Now!"

Squall seized his remote and turned it on before freezing as he took in what he was seeing on the screen. The Presidential Palace in Esthar was dominating the picture and it was burning quite substantially, gouts of black smoke pouring out of a large hole that had been blown in the side of the building. The bar rolling along the bottom of the screen was of equal interest as it read; Esthar Terrorist Attack.

"Jumping Jack Christ." Cid exclaimed as Squall turned up the volume so they could hear what the reporter was saying.

"…In the small hours of this morning the Presidential Palace was hit my mortar fire and rocket propelled grenades." The reporter was saying. "There are also several unverified reports of fire from several long range howitzers being fired from outside the city. No terrorist group has claimed responsibility and no casualties have been reported. Back to the studio."

"That's the second attack on people close to us in the last couple of weeks." Squall said turning the TV off. "In fact between the sniper attack on Caraway and this I'm beginning to think someone's messing with us."

"Any idea who?" Zell asked.

"Not much but I've got a pretty good idea who we ask." He sighed. "Quistis could you get both the Skyle brothers up here? I think it's high time we had a talk with them. Zell, refuel the Ragnarok and then send a team to Esthar to assess the damage and liaise with the Estharian Counter Terrorism Bureau."

Five minutes later Quistis marched into Squall's office accompanied by Mika and Dante who were pointedly ignoring one another.

"Mr Skyle," Squall stood up and shook Dante's hand. "I want you to know we don't all condone Quistis' actions but we're letting them slide. This is Cid Kramer, Headmaster and I am Squall Leonhart, Commander. We have some questions we'd like to ask you."

"Okay." Dante said. "Let me set out some ground rules. I'll tell you a fair amount of information, I think Quistis "earned" it but there are some places you really shouldn't go and even if you decide to torture me I won't cough because believe me, I've suffered worse."

"Okay first thing first," Squall said. "Can you think of any reason why someone would attempt to murder your brother?"

"They met him." Dante quipped before laughing. "Not really. I wouldn't read too much into if I were you. Everyone makes enemies in this world and I guess it's just bad luck that one of them was a murderous type."

"Florence bloody Nightingale to the rescue huh?" Mika muttered just audibly to which his brother jauntily flipped him off.

"Okay." Squall went on. "Mika told us you've been missing for a considerable amount of time. Could you shed some light on your whereabouts during your missing months?"

"You know when I said there are some places you really shouldn't go?" Dante's voice hardened. "This is one of them. Trust me you really don't want to know where I was. You don't need that in your head."

"I think we can handle it." Squall replied.

"No you can't." Dante told him. "If you think you can goad me into fessing up I'd advise against it."

"Okay next question." Squall submitted. "Your brother told us that you might know a little about a man called Swift Obsidian."

Dante's face changed and even with the rigid mental control he couldn't entirely hide the firestorm of emotions that rippled through him. Quistis scanned his face and saw shock, disbelief and…was it possible…fear? Dante took a few deep breaths.

"What do you know about Swift Obsidian?" He asked, keeping his voice as neutral as possible.

"That he's been here." Squall replied, thrilled at the effect he'd had. "We're not happy to see old friends again are we?"

"Trust me on this." Dante said. "The fact that you're not terrified by his mere presence simply proves that you have no idea what he's like."

"So why don't you tell us?" Squall encouraged him. "If you tell us what you know we guarantee our safety and we might even be able to fight him."

"Doubtful." Dante laughed humourlessly. "Swift Obsidian's is a member of a family of world class troublemakers and he's single-mindedly devoted to his goals which remain conveniently ambiguous. Once he starts something he doesn't stop until everything in his path is removed."

"Right what about this family?" Squall asked. "Do you know anything about them?"

I know enough to know they exist but that's it." Dante replied. "Swift is the only one I've met in person. I don't even know their names. All I know is that relatively speaking Swift is the good guy. He's got a code of morals and a sense of honour. He also never kills if he can avoid it. Put it this way. If it's true that he's the good guy then I really don't want to meet the others."

"So you've crossed paths with the guy." Squall leaned forwards. "What did he do to you?"

"He destroyed my life." Dante stated. "Beyond that, don't go there. Just know that if you piss him off you don't do so again in a hurry."

"Look Dante we're going to need more than that." Squall said "What about…"

"Squall," Quistis said it quietly having noticed the pain and the haunted look in Dante's eyes. She drew her finger across her throat. "That's enough."

"Okay." Squall sighed before standing up. "Thank you for your time Mr Skyle. We've gotten everything we need. You have free reign of all our facilities and we'll sort you out rooms."

"If Swift was really messing with you, you'd know it." Dante said as he stood up. "He'd go after people close to you." He left the room and Mika followed.

"That's it." Cid said. "The attack on the Presidential Palace and the sniper in Deling City. It has to be Swift."

"We can't assume that yet." Quistis said. "Two points make a line, not a pattern. We need more evidence."

"You throw in my encounter with Swift in the Training Centre and we have our pattern." Squall spoke up. "I think we should beef up our security and circulate his description."

In the lift Mika decided to approach a subject he'd been wondering about, regardless of the risks.

"You know when Squall said he didn't condone how Quistis' had gotten you to cooperate?" He enquired. "What did he mean?"

"Now is not the time you want to do this Mika, believe me." Dante thundered, glaring hatefully at the wall.

"Sorry but that's not going to wash." Mika countered. "You may be able to satisfy the good and plenty's but I know you too well. There's something you're not telling me."

"You're very sure of yourself," Dante observed. "Goading me while you're still recovering from a double bullet wound." Quick as flash he grabbed Mika by the back of the neck, causing his head to tilt back in spasm. "Don't test me." The he smacked Mika's head against the wall of the elevator knocking him spark out.

* * *

There were four guards on Balamb Garden's front entrance. They were all former Special Forces and were armed with pepper spray, extendable batons, stun guns and AR-15 assault rifles. The leader was the first to see the approaching figure and in light of the description he'd received he practically swallowed his tongue in fright. Then he raised his weapon to point at the figure.

"Stop right there!" He yelled aggressively cocking his weapon to show he meant business. "Do not come any closer! Raise your hands!"

"This could have gone differently." Swift said before he was amongst them as if the space between him and them hadn't existed. His hands shot out and tore two hearts from their chests. He hit the third man with a right cross that spun his head around a lot further than his neck bones could handle. Then his other hand swept up with a karate chop to the final man's neck. It sent his head sailing through the air like a misdirected bowling ball. Swift pulled a handkerchief from his top pocket and wiped his hands clean before giving the corpses a regretful look. "Sorry about that."

Swift quickly moved through Balamb Garden effortlessly evading the night porters and guards and before long he'd reached the staff quarters. He came to the door that he was fairly sure led to Squall Leonhart's room. He tried the handle and was unsurprised to find it locked. He sighed. Maybe something else was in order.

Squall and Rinoa were both awoken by a thunderous crash that was quickly revealed to be a certain someone kicking the door in. Swift stepped into the room and Squall rolled his eyes.

"Oh great." He said in an unmistakeable long suffering tone. "You're paying for that door you know."

"I was in the neighbourhood so I thought I'd swing by and see if you can provide me with a few road trip necessities." Swift said pleasantly. "You know, spare tyre, flashlight," His gaze fell on Rinoa. "Sorceress."

"I don't think so." Squall said as he seized his gun blade and charged. Swift easily evaded the thrust before grabbing Squall by his wrist and shoulder and throwing him bodily into the hall.

As luck would have it, there were no rooms in the student quarters so Dante had been given the room next door to Squall and Rinoa's. He'd been woken by the door being kicked in and had heard the whole exchange so he quickly formulated a plan. He threw his window wide open and clambered out onto the sill. If he misjudged this, he'd be dead but the reward (pissing off Swift) far outweighed the risks. He leapt along to Squall's window and managed to grab the sill.

Rinoa was watching Squall continually swing at Swift with his gun blade. So far he hadn't connected. Rinoa was considering lending a hand with her Sorceress powers when she heard a tapping at her window. She walked over and threw back the curtains before getting a shock when she saw Dante looking in at her. He gestured at her to open the window which she did and he climbed inside.

"Quick, get on my back." He told her insistently. Rinoa hesitated momentarily. "You can trust me. Get on my back." Rinoa climbed onto Dante's back and clasped her arms around his neck. Then he clambered back out onto the window sill. One highly dangerous and equally awkward jump later Dante dumped Rinoa onto his bed.

Swift finally tired of dodging Squall's attacks and kicked out, knocking his gun blade aside. Then he seized Squall by the waistband and scruff of his neck and hurled him headfirst into a pillar, putting him out for the count. He headed into the room and sighed in exasperation when he saw the empty bed. He picked up a long splinter of the shattered door.

"Hello!" He called out jovially. "To whom it may concern, you're making a grave mistake if you think you can beat me. You can't. I repeat, you cannot beat me. I want the girl standing next to me on the count of three or heads will roll. Do we understand one another?"

"Oh I understand alright Swift." Dante said stepping out into the hallway. "I understand that you're a jumped up never to come down sociopath with delusions of grandeur. I also understand that you need to realise that not everyone is afraid of you."

"What game are you playing?" Swift enquired lightly as Squall started to stir feebly behind him. "More to the point, how did you escape?"

"You'd be surprised what you can do when you want to." Dante said before ripping the pin from a flash bang grenade and tossing it at Swift. It exploded in his face and while Swift was stunned he felt a fist slam into his ribs. Then he received a two-footed kick to the chest that knocked him backwards.

"Very impressive." He laughed as he righted himself and faced Dante who'd grabbed the door splinter when Swift dropped it. "I would've thought you'd learned your lesson after the last time you angered me."

"I am a slow learner." Dante said, attempting to keep Swift occupied so he wouldn't notice Squall who was still recovered but was crawling towards his gun blade.

"You know I've had time to think." Swift said conversationally. "I think what happened to you was a bit of an overreaction. I was fairly happy with my punishment but Alexander…he's hard to control."

Squall had recovered adequately to process what Swift was saying and he stared incredulously at Dante. Dante was obviously hiding something. Dante ignored Squall's questioning look as he stepped forwards his eyes boring into Swift.

"Believe me Swift," He growled as he raised the door splinter, "Once I'm finished with you I'll deal with your nutcase of a brother."

Squall silently cursed as he got a hand to his gun blade hilt. Dante had said he didn't know anything about the other members of the family. Still, as far as he was concerned Swift was the more immediate problem. Squall tensed himself before leaping back to his feet and angling his gun blade upwards. He sliced through Swift's left calf muscle, hamstringing him savagely. Swift howled in agony but his torment was far from over. Dante wrenched a handgun from his belt and shot him twice in the gut before charging forwards and impaling him through the chest with the door splinter like a makeshift spear. Swift was driven backwards until he hit a wall where he remained impaled with his face locked in a painfully surprised expression.

Rinoa rushed out of Dante's room and kissed Squall on the lips before throwing her arms around him. Dante let go of the door splinter and it remained in place and Rinoa caught his eye. She mouthed her thanks to him to which he simply smiled and waved a hand dismissively.

The door at the end of the hall opened and a group of SeeD in body armour carrying automatic weapons and led by Quistis sprinted in.

"We found the guards at the front gate all dead." Quistis said. "Two had their hearts ripped out, another's neck was broken and the last's head was nowhere near the rest of him. We caught roughly half a second of Swift on CCTV and figured he might be after Dante or Squall so we got here as fast as we could."

"From what I heard he was after Rinoa actually." Dante replied. "Luckily for her, Swift's let himself go."

"I want a word with you Dante." Squall said firmly. "You mentioned Swift had a brother, Alexander or something. You failed to mention that when we questioned you earlier. You said you knew nothing about his family."

"Yeah that was a tangled web of lies." Dante scratched his chin unconcernedly. "I also said there were something's I wouldn't tell you and anything about Alexander falls under that heading. You don't need to know and it's doubtful you'll ever will."

"That's not good enough!" Squall barked, beginning to lose his cool. "If you don't tell me what I want to know I'll start with aggressive interrogation and who knows where it'll end."

"You do that and you'll have a whole new set of problems." A new voice said as Mika stepped into the light. "No one beats Dante but me and while I'm here…" He drew back a fist and let Dante have it full in the face. "…that's for what happened in the lift."

"Fair one." Dante nodded as Mika spun on his heel and stalked off.

"I'm giving you one final chance Dante," Squall said ominously. Dante simply met his gaze but didn't speak. That was evidently enough for Squall. "Arrest him." Two SeeD members moved towards Dante one unhooking wrist cuffs from his belt.

"Come at me with those cuffs and I'll make you eat them." Dante said threateningly, adopting a combat stance, his feet apart and centre of gravity low.

"Stand down." Quistis broke in. She wasn't looking at Dante however. She was looking at the SeeD members who hesitated momentarily before backing off.

"Quistis, what are you doing?" Squall demanded.

"Look around you Squall." Quistis replied firmly. "Dante may have withheld information but he also helped you stop Swift from abducting Rinoa without asking for anything. That's pretty admirable in my book."

"Seconded." Rinoa nodded. "If it wasn't for him his little late night visit could've ended very differently."

"Fine," Squall sighed. "Get Swift's body down to the morgue. We'll do a post mortem tomorrow and figure out exactly what his deal is. Call maintenance to fix our door. Dante, I'll be watching you. If you put a toe out of line you'll find yourself in some extremely hot water."

"Watch away boss." Dante replied brazenly. "Watch away to your hearts content."

Squall followed Rinoa back into his room practically grinding his teeth while the SeeD team peeled Swift's carcass off the wall and bore it off towards the Gardens morgue leaving Dante and Quistis alone, staring at each other.

"What?" Quistis laughed, noticing that Dante was looking at her as if he'd never seen her before.

"Thanks for the backup." Dante said sincerely. "I've been tortured by Galbadian Intelligence before and I've got no wish to see how Balamb Garden's methods compare."

"It was the least I could do." Quistis smiled. "You threw yourself into a fight to the death for us with no thought of reward, other than a rather painful death. That's pretty incredible."

"That's what she says to all the boys." Dante quipped with an alarmingly quick return to his usual personality.

"I mean it." Quistis told him earnestly. "You're pretty incredible."

* * *

For the second time in as many nights Dante ended up in bed with Quistis and predictably sleep was the last thing on his mind. Surprisingly enough Quistis was on the same page. She purred in satisfaction, wrapped her arm around him and rested her head on his chest.

"Squall doesn't like me very much, does he?" Dante mused thoughtfully as he idly wound a strand of Quistis' hair around his fingers.

"He just gets like that sometimes." Quistis said. "You should've seen what he was like four years ago. Think manic depressive without the good days."

"Old Squall does sound like a barrel of laughs now doesn't he?" Dante chuckled. "Pity I never met him, but new and improved Squall isn't exactly walking around singing "Shiny Happy People" by R.E.M. at the best of times is he?"

"What's your point?" Quistis asked sitting up and looking down at Dante.

"I read people pretty well." Dante stated. "It's one of my defining characteristics. There's something going on with Squall and I would really like to know what because my intuition tells me it's not good."

"Well a few weeks ago there was a hotel siege in Deling City." Quistis explained. "One of our members was killed and I guess that may have rattled Squall. It was the first time he'd lost someone under his command."

"Maybe that's it." Dante grunted although Quistis could tell he was unconvinced. "At least we haven't got Swift screwing things up anymore."

* * *

**Author Commentary: That's the end of the Obsidian arc, at least for the time being. There are more of them out there and we should be meeting another fairly soon. I particularly enjoyed Swift's easy disassembly of the security guards, which is kind of disturbing given exactly what he did. I'm also hoping to build on the whole Quistis/Dante/Mika triangle and sooner or later the brothers will wrestle out their differences. Mika's still a little weak but the funny thing about bullet wounds is, they heal. Once Mika's back at full strength we'll be able to see what exactly he's capable. There's a few more hints to what exactly happened to Dante when he and Swift crossed paths but now that we've established a few OC's (I cut four characters to keep the number down) we'll get back to the main characters in upcoming chapters. Thanks to both my excellent reviewers Dee and Bebedora. Thanks also to everyone else for reading it even if you didn't leave a review. Again I'd appreciate all compliments, flames and constructive criticism especially the last one. 'Til next time.**

**~Ally Todd**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: Gas to the Flames**

Mika was finally discharged from the infirmary and he immediately started some moderately strenuous "therapy". He'd dismissed all the Doctors suggestions and opted to pump some pretty serious iron, run laps around the main hall of Balamb Garden and kill anything and everything he could find in the training centre. He and Dante had both procured an assault rifle from the armoury. Dante had chosen the infamous AK-47, renowned for its rugged durability, ease of use and reliability while Mika had opted to go with the M16 carbine, sacrificing reliability in favour of power and accuracy.

The brothers kept their distance which did noting to alleviate Squall's suspicions that they hadn't been particularly close even before Dante's mysterious disappearance. Squall had frequently contemplated dragging Dante down to the Interrogation facilities in the MD level to get some answers but on the other hand, Dante had proved himself a useful asset when Swift showed up. Squall reluctantly decided to put his faith in Quistis' insistence that Dante would come out with the truth when he was good and ready. Dante's "relationship" with Quistis had gained him borderline hero worship from a good portion of the male cadet population. He had however firmly established himself as public enemy number one in the eyes of the Trepies whom he delighted in goading.

In almost direct contrast to his brother's gung-ho attitude Mika was quiet and kept to himself. Nearly everyone was favourably impressed with him, especially a not insubstantial number of female cadets and the odd male. While Dante would probably have a good gloat over it Mika barely acknowledged this development and when he did it was with an air of polite detachment. He privately admitted that nothing would come of the attention as he was far too busy whipping himself into peak physical condition so he could give Dante the ass kicking he so richly deserved. It would take a while, as the bullet wounds were still there but they were getting better every day and the stiffness and pins and needles were all but gone, easily enough for Mika to sling some sly barbs in his brother's direction. Most of the staff were aware that the tension would eventually come to a head but they were generally content to adopt a policy of "wait and see" instead of getting in the middle, as such an approach could be considered borderline masochistic.

"Is it me?" Zell wondered aloud one lunchtime. "Or is there something a little off about those brothers?"

"I wouldn't bring it up around Quistis." Selphie said warningly. "She is sleeping with one of them and won't heard a word said against him."

"Looks as if Quistis isn't as reserved as we thought." Zell muttered. "Three guesses on what that girls thinking with."

"This is Quistis we're talking about." Rinoa broke in, glowering at Zell. "I'm sure she's got plenty of sound reasons to be with Dante even if she doesn't share them with you. Personally I'd prefer Mika, but hey to each their own."

"Ooh is Rinoa having lusty wrong feelings about Mika Skyle?" Selphie giggled.

"Don't be so daft." Rinoa said unconcernedly. "If I wasn't already in a relationship I'd be first in line to take a shot at him. I mean honestly, just take a look at him. He's quite the dish."

"I suppose that's a good point." Selphie sighed. "I suppose it's a good thing I've got Irvy to keep me occupied otherwise I'd jump his bones so hard he'd never be the same again. Come to think of it, I wouldn't mind a chance to do the same to Dante."

"I prefer Mika honestly." Rinoa said. "He seems really solid and wholesome, like he wouldn't cause a girl heartache. I think Quistis' is playing with fire by sleeping with Dante."

"I'm glad you're so concerned." Quistis said as she and Dante sat down. "Should I relay this conversation to Squall and Irvine?"

"We're just doing a little window shopping." Selphie said. "They'd know that we're not being deadly serious."

"Well isn't that fortunate." Dante grinned at them manically. "Mika's not exactly a ladies man, in the sense that I seriously doubt he'd know what to do with a girl if you gave him one."

"You'd be surprised Dante." Mika said as he joined them. "After all, I had to comfort a legion of profoundly distraught bimbos with blatantly artificial knockers after you went walkabout."

"You're never going to let the missing in action thing go are you?" Dante asked mildly.

"Probably not." Mika admitted. "However if I hear a satisfactory explanation and you tell me exactly what it has to do with the late Swift Obsidian I may well be inclined to extend the hand of forgiveness instead of the boot of retribution."

"Nice try Mika," Dante grinned. "But you'll have to get up a lot earlier than that. Please don't insult my intelligence if you like your face the way it is. I can't see why you would personally but that's irrelevant. You have a good day, bye now."

Defeated but no less vindictive Mika stormed off with a face like thunder muttering dire threats under his breath, mainly along the lines of chaining Dante to jagged rocks with his genitals nowhere near the rest of him. Dante laughed.

"That was fun."

* * *

Squall was practically sprinting towards the morgue. He'd overslept and he was very interested in what a port mortem could tell them about Swift. Doctor Kadowaki had left him three messages, the last informing him that they couldn't wait and had decided to proceed without them. Squall slid a card into a slot and pushed the door open before heading into operating theatre four. It was pitch black, which struck Squall as odd unless the medics were using night vision. He attempted to flip the light on but the power was obviously out. That in itself was off because everything else in the Garden was on. Feeling more and more uneasy Squall grabbed a flashlight and flipped it on.

The scene that greeted him was macabre even for him. The floor was slick with blood and the rest of the room hadn't fared much better. Blood was covering absolutely everything and various cabinets were smashed beyond any hope of repair. The grate covering the air vent had been ripped from its reinforced housing and was now embedded in the wall. It didn't take much of a guess to figure out what had happened. There was a groan from a corner and Squall saw Doctor Kadowaki propped up against the wall. A surgical hacksaw was sticking out of her midriff. Squall dived towards her and examined the wound.

"Squall…" Kadowaki rasped.

"Don't move," Squall said as he ripped her surgical scrubs down the front before taking a gamble and gently withdrawing the saw. A torrent of blood followed but Squall wrenched the Doctor upright and dumped her on the operating table. He bundled the scrubs and used it to staunch the blood flow before grabbing a syringe of morphine and jabbing it into Kadowaki's wrist.

Ten minutes later, the entire Garden was a scene or marginally controlled chaos. Squall had managed to get Kadowaki to the infirmary where the entirety of the Garden medics and surgeons were now working to stabilise her. Squall had delegated an eight man team of the best SeeD's as Rinoa's bodyguards in case Swift had another go. Every other SeeD, cadet, guard and secretary were screaming about test firing weapons, checking and rechecking equipment and stocking every type of magic going. Squall was holding council of war in his office. Present were Cid, Quistis, Zell, Irvine, Selphie, Xu, Dante and Mika.

"We don't know how long he's been gone," Squall said. "But I don't think it could be any more than an hour or so. That suggests that Swift is still somewhere on the island. Irvine and Zell, I want you to close the port and train station in Balamb and search every boat and train. You find Swift, don't confront him. Just maintain contact and call in the rest of us."

"Easier said than done." Dante muttered in the background.

"Quistis," Squall said pointedly ignoring Dante. "I want you to take a team into the mountains. Selphie will provide air cover in the Ragnarok. Xu, Cid I want you to run communications and coordinate the search. I'll take a mobile SeeD team and cover the forests, plains, beach and the Fire Cavern. Our only advantage is Swift might think we want to capture him. I think we're all agreed that's not an option anymore. We're going for blood."

"I'm sorry but how did Swift survive being hamstringed, shot and impaled in the first place?" Mika spoke up. "Because that tends to kill some people."

"I don't know." Squall admitted. "When we confront him, I expect nothing less than gratuitous violence from everyone. Dante, is there anything you can think of that will optimise our chances of grabbing him?"

"Not much but I you happen to be talking to one of the few people in the world who stands a chance at tracking him down with any degree of success." Dante replied, for once serious.

"Good to have you with us." Squall admitted grudgingly. "Go."

"Wilco," Dante said before surprising everyone by turning to Mika. "Hope you're fit brother."

"Fitter than you." Mika replied, raising his rifle and clicking the safety catch to show he meant business.

"We'll see." Dante grinned before he and Mika left the office apparently on the best of terms. Everyone's head turned towards Quistis for an explanation.

"I don't get it." She replied.

"I don't want to keep you lot from psychoanalyzing Quistis' boyfriend but we have a fugitive to run down." Squall said as he stood up and buckled on his gun blade, remodelled to the ultimate Lion Heart model.

"So," Dante said as he and Mika rode the lift down to the ground floor. "I'm guessing it was you who sent the flowers to Quistis the day after her birthday."

"Yeah it was." Mika admitted. "Sorry about that, but she was the first friendly face I saw when I woke up, and you weren't sleeping with her at that point. Go ahead Dante. Stake your claim and get it over with."

"I'd normally knock you into the middle of next week." Dante said. "But right now we have a job to do. Your little code of honour stops you from going after a girl that's already taken so provided be track down Swift and chop him into croutons we'll call it even."

"So what do you reckon?" Mika said dully, eyeing his brother and raising a clenched fist. "Partners then?"

"Partners." Dante sighed reluctantly knocking his fist against Mika's at they reached the ground floor and headed for the parking lot. Dante had retrieved his Minsk from Balamb after Quistis had kicked him out of her room and he fired it up while Mika grabbed a rather dilapidated Honda Super Cub. They roared out of the Garden and stopped briefly while they started putting their unique tracking skills to use.

"This way!" Dante cried before opening the throttle and accelerating towards Balamb, both brothers doubling the speed limit. They thundered into Balamb and stopped at the first parking spot they saw before hopping off their bikes and unslinging their weapons. Zell and Irvine wouldn't be far behind but Dante had decided to try a few unconventional methods. He stepped up the weapon smiths and hammered on the door.

"Open up!" He yelled aggressively. "This is Balamb Garden official business. We'd like to talk to you."

"What's your authorisation?" A voice yelled from within. Mika and Dante exchanged a look before Mika fired a burst in the air, causing a chorus of screams as pedestrians dove for cover.

"Okay then," The weapon smith called as the door opened very quickly indeed. "Come on in."

"That's what I love about this town." Dante laughed as he walked in. "Everyone's so helpful."

* * *

Swift opened the door into one of the vast metal warehouses in Esthar's even vaster business district. Inside the sickening stench of blood hit Swift like a dum-dum bullet. Hundreds of carcasses hung from silver hooks, stiff and shiny with frosty blood, cows, pigs and sheep were everywhere. Swift wasn't moving as fast as usual, thanks to an unfortunate encounter with a gun blade wielded by Squall Leonhart, but he'd soon heal. His latest excursion to Balamb Garden had ended in failure, thanks largely to the dangerous random factor of Dante Skyle turning up.

Swift moved forwards, further into the ice cold abattoir, powerful overhead lights made it as bright as day, but Swift couldn't see what he'd come looking for yet. He moved forwards, taking care and moving forwards. The combination of blood and water on the tiled floor made it slipperier than pack ice. He pushed a cow carcass aside, the creak of the hook setting his teeth on edge. He sighed.

"Oh for pity's sake Renton," He spoke up. "You don't have to hide from me. I'm here on business."

"Well pardon me," Came the acerbic reply as a man walked out from behind a line of pigs. "I can't be too careful. I've even got SeeD Special Forces on my ass these days."

"Another thing you and I have got in common?" Swift replied nodding at the man by way of a greeting.

James Renton was of totally unremarkable stature, but it was to be expected as everything remarkable about him was related to the career. He need anonymity in his line of work. Renton had been a weapons designer in Esthar under Sorceress Adel and it was said that he was close to designing a housing for the Crystal Pillar when Doctor Hans Odine, the country's minister for mad science "borrowed" his papers and fashioned the doomsday weapon Lunatic Pandora which was considerably more high profile than anything Renton had come up with. When Laguna Loire had deposed Adel, Renton's world had come crashing down around his ears. He'd promptly disappeared and started a career as an arms dealer with a reputation that led to him being the got to guy for high tech equipment be it a mobile, anti-rocket cannon or blue prints for a missile guidance system.

"It's been a while Swift," Renton nodded. "How did the automatic plasma pistol work out for you?"

"Perfectly." Swift nodded before pulling out a notepad and handing it to Renton. "I'm placing another order."

"If it's a big order it will take time." Renton said as he took the notepad. He scanned it and his jaw practically hit the floor. "Whoa."

"It's a bit on the large side I'm aware," Swift said pleasantly. "But I wouldn't be here if I didn't think you could do it."

"Well I know I've got a reputation for getting high tech stuff," Renton said. "But this is the biggest order I've ever received. It's going to take a lot to pull it off and even then I'm not sure that it's possible."

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't think you could do it." Swift repeated, pulling out a pistol with a thick black silencer screwed onto the end of the barrel. Renton went pale as Swift pulled the slide back to chamber a round with a click that echoed throughout the vast room.

"Wait!" Renton cried desperately. "I can do it. But it'll cost you, five million in advance and another fifteen on delivery."

"I wouldn't have though you were in any position to make demands." Swift said, stowing the pistol and pulling out a chequebook. "I'll give you an extra half million as a good faith payment. If I were you, I wouldn't take that as a sign of payment. You mess me around and I will find you. Then I'll decide whether I hand you over to the authorities, or that other thing. Clear?"

"Sure," Renton said, his voice having gone up an octave. "You can count on me."

"Of course I can." Swift said sweetly, patting Renton on the cheek. "Make sure that my faith in you is not misplaced."

* * *

"I don't believe this!" Squall raged. "I had every able bodied SeeD and cadet out tearing the whole island apart and no one managed to track this guy down. Am I surrounded by complete idiots?"

"In our defence you didn't get him either." Dante bit off.

"Shut up!" Squall bellowed. "You said you'd be able to track him down and you've come up with diddly with a side order of squat. All you succeeded in doing is scaring the hell out of Balamb's residents."

"I said I was one of the few people in the world who stood a chance at tracking him down with any degree of success." Dante corrected acidly. "I'm not a bloody miracle worker and if you can't handle that, then you'll have to deal with Swift by yourself. Truth be told, you're not making me want to open up about how exactly I know the guy. I'd also thank you to not to raise your voice to me."

"I'm still in charge here." Squall said in a soft deadly voice, eyeballing Dante. "If you ever dictate how to do my job again you will be sorry."

"Oh stick it as far as it'll go." Dante retorted. "I didn't come here to usurp your position, but I'm not going to be your lapdog either. You have authority over all SeeD's, cadets, Garden workers et cetera but you've got no authority over yours truly. I like to think of myself as an outside contractor." He took a cocky bow, winked at Squall and left the room.

"He makes me crazy." Squall muttered, massaging his skull ridges. "I've seen some mad guys in my time, but Dante? He's a complete whack job."

"He's got a point." Quistis spoke up. "Yelling at us all is really going to help capture Swift."

"What do you suggest?" Squall demanded.

"We circulate his description to everyone." Quistis said. "Esthar, Galbadia, Dollet, Timber, Fisherman's Horizon, Trabia even the Shumi Village. He's bound to turn up eventually. We wait for him to slip up instead of just hoping we run across him. The whole world is a pretty big area to search."

"Approximate five hundred and ten million square miles." Xu muttered unhelpfully in the background before brightening. "We could talk to Esthar. They've got those new surveillance drones. I'm sure the President could be persuaded to divert one."

"They're also armed with air to surface rockets." Irvine concurred. "I'd like to see Swift walk away from a direct hit with one of those."

"That's not a bad idea." Squall grimaced. "Call up Esthar Air Station Control. If they don't cooperate threaten to go to the President. Is they still don't cooperate, go to the President. Or send Dante over there to motivate them. I don't think he'd be nearly as annoying on a different continent."

"Then you clearly don't know the guy." Mika grunted from the corner. "I'm curious, have you actually met the guy? Six feet tall, dark hair, idiot. Ring anything?"

"That's a bit harsh Mika." Quistis said reproachfully. "He's may act like your typical boor but he has his moments."

"I bet he does." Mika smirked. "Pity that you two can't recreate the moments in question publicly without getting arrested for indecent exposure."

"Can we please get back to the problem at hand?" Squall interjected. "I'd like to keep my lunch in my stomach and not hear about Dante's healthy sex drive."

"Sorry," Mika muttered before his face changed. "Wait a second…I'm having a thought. It's definitely possible…maybe even plausible."

"What are you on about?" Squall asked.

"Give me a couple of hours and I may have a few answers regarding Swift's disappearing act." He grimaced. "Just a thought, pour a barrel of petrol down the vent he escaped through and set in on fire. While you're doing that I'll have to check something." He headed out through the door.

"Does anyone have any idea what he's talking about?" Squall demanded of the room at large exasperatedly.

"He strikes me as a great deal saner than his brother." Selphie said. "Sorry Quistis, but you have to admit Dante has got a habit of making tenuous highly leaps of logic."

"I suppose that's fair." Quistis nodded. "No-one's perfect."

* * *

Later that evening, Dante was lounging on Quistis' bed, inexplicably shirtless and perusing a copy of _Guns and Ammo _and simmering silently. Quistis was sitting at her desk and was correcting essays on indirect magic and keeping a wary eye on Dante whom she expected would either hit the bottle or talk himself into kicking Squall's door in tooled up with a baseball bat.

"Who the bloody hell does Squall wanker Leonhart think he is?" Dante fumed. "I come here with some valuable information and what do I get? A card? A fruit basket? Oh no, no, no I just get attitude from a glorified fencer."

"He just gets that way sometimes." Quistis reasoned. "Don't let it bother you. He's like that to everyone.

"Please stop saying that." Dante replied. "I don't care if he just gets that way sometimes. I have useful information and I feel I'm being mistreated."

"Maybe he'd lay off you if you were to give up the information." Quistis suggested. This was clearly the wrong thing to say.

"Over my dead body." Dante bit off stubbornly. "If he wants the information he has to earn it and between you and me he's not doing a brilliant job. He's really beginning to bug me in that special I want to shove something pointy and metal through his apology for a face. If you figure out who gave him that scar, give them a bloody kiss on the mouth from me."

Quistis was taking a drink and she inhaled maybe half a pint of water up her nose as she started to laugh at the thought of kissing Seifer. Dante watched her splutter with an air of polite detachment before resolutely returning to reading up on the virtues of a 7.65 millimetre round.

"You have no idea how funny you are." Quistis said. "If given a choice between a Grendel with picked onion breath and the person who actually gave Squall that scar I'd go for the former in a heartbeat."

"I don't like Grendel's while we're on the subject." Dante said conversationally. "I don't think they like me much either. You know the scar on my back? A Grendel did that. One of its fangs caught between my shoulder blades and then ripped downwards."

"Your point being?" Quistis enquired lightly.

"Well what say you we lock Squall in a room with a pack of Grendel's cursed with serious mental health issues?" Dante suggested.

"A little bit unethical." Quistis answered though she was perfectly aware that Dante wasn't being deadly serious.

"Sod unethical." Dante exclaimed belligerently. "It'd be funny as hell."

"Dante," Quistis said looking up from the latest essay. "You may not like it but Squall is in charge around here. He's extremely useful when it comes to violence and he's a good leader so just let it go."

"You think there's something going on with him." Dante pointed out, unwilling to back down. "Don't even try to deny it."

"Even if I did," Quistis retorted. "I'm confident in my belief that Squall can handle whatever it is. I don't want a membership to the "We Hate Squall Leonhart Club" I just want to finish off marking these essays and then do stuff with you I can never tell anyone about because they still think I'm a good girl."

"Okay but I'm putting Squall third on my list of people I must hurt very badly at some point list." Dante said decisively.

"Who's second and first?" Quistis asked in spite of herself. "I'm guessing one is Mika right?"

"Wrong." Dante chirped. "Mika's my brother but I don't really want to hurt him, much a s he really, really deserves it at times. Second is the illustrious Swift Obsidian. As for number one, don't go there."

"Come on Dante," Quistis sighed. "I think you can tell me about your past. If you're completely straight with me I'll borrow Selphie's maid outfit."

"Selphie has a maids outfit?" Dante echoed. "Who knew? Irvine must be in seventh heaven."

"I think it was Irvine who bought it for her actually," Quistis admitted. "But that aside, imagine how it would look on me."

"That's all I'll be able to do." Dante said. "Quistis, I really like you but I'm not sure if I can trust you not to go running to Squall the moment I fess up."

"It's nice to know you think so highly of me." Quistis snapped. "It's heart-warming my dear Dante."

"Look what happened to me is personal." Dante sighed. "I'm not ready to tell anyone about it yet. Only three people know what happened in its entirety and two of them are two of the most vicious bastards the world has ever seen. So please, just let me tell people in my own time."

* * *

**Author Commentary: Another one down. I know this chapter is light on the action but full of exposition and for that I can only apologise and let you know that the next chapter is going to hopefully remedy that. There will be hints of romance for Mika (for real this time) and some action as well as one particular character beginning to go rather spectacularly off the rails. I particularly liked the reference to Seifer because although he's not present and will not be appearing in the near future I can't allow myself to forget that he is a part of the world and one of my favourite characters in popular culture. When he comes back you'll know all about it. I also enjoyed writing the scene where Rinoa and Selphie discuss the merits of both Skyle brothers and Dante's reaction to it all. As for Dante and Squall's relationship it will come perilously close to violence in chapters to come but believe me when I say there will also be one person acting extremely out of character soon. As for Quistis' offering to dress up as a slutty maid, I _loved _writing that. This site is chock-a-block with works that portray Quistis as sugar and spice and everything nice (I've been guilty of that) and I like to give her a naughty side. Thanks and hugs go out to my reviewers Dee and Bebedora and all the others. I would love a review to tell me what you think, insult me or offer constructive criticism. Until the next time, I bid you good day.**

**~Ally Todd**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: Disturbance**

Squall was busy writing out a description of Swift Obsidian, covering everything from his physical characteristics to his inexplicable ability to shrug off a major chest wound as a minor inconvenience. He would send the description to every security service in the civilised world and hope one of them would be able to inform Balamb Garden of his whereabouts. He looked up as Mika walked in.

"You may not have noticed but I'm a bit busy Mika." Squall said coldly. "Can this wait?"

"Oh very nice," Mika said sarcastically. "I'm the guy who found out how Swift managed to evade us yesterday but do I get thanks? Like hell I do. You really need to work on your people skills."

"If I want your opinion on my people skills I'll ask for it." Squall said before motioning Mika to a chair. "Make it quick."

"Okay," Mika pulled a compact disk in a clear plastic case from his jacket. "When we couldn't find Swift on the island I guessed that he'd left it. This disc contains the last seventy two hours of CCTV footage at the docks. Less than an hour after his escape he turns up in the docks and promptly throws himself in the drink."

"Are you telling me he swam somewhere?" Squall enquired. "The nearest landmass is hundreds of miles away."

"Well that was my first thought." Mika answered sarcastically. "But I dismissed that because I'm not a total ass clown. My best bet is he was picked up by an accomplice in a motor boat a few miles offshore."

"What's your evidence behind that?" Squall demanded, mainly trying to cover his embarrassment at the fact that he'd seriously considered the possibility of Swift swimming across an entire ocean.

"Oh I've got no evidence," Mika said cheerfully. "I'm just making an educated guess. If you have an alternative reason why he dived into the ocean I'm all ears."

"Okay you've got me there." Squall conceded. "I still don't see how this is useful to us."

"You do know you haven't seen the last of Swift Obsidian right?" Mika said seriously. "He'll be back, partly to pick up your girlfriend and partly to get even with Dante for impaling him on the wall with a door fragment. I think any information is useful at this juncture."

"I'll take it under advisement." Squall bit off. "Now in case you haven't noticed I'm busy. Go somewhere that's away."

"Sometimes I don't know why I bother." Mika muttered. Squall didn't even look up as Mika headed for the door. "No, no it was my sodding pleasure."

"Alright!" Squall snapped. "Go and get Selphie and find the coastguard to see if they know anything."

"Selphie?" Mika echoed blankly. He hadn't done a great deal of socialising since he'd left the infirmary.

"Brown hair, green eyes, about so high." Squall reeled off readily. "Natural with magic and one of the best people to have watching your back especially if Obsidian shows up."

"With respect, I think that's highly unlikely." Mika replied. "If you have Balamb Garden on your ass you go to ground temporarily no matter how bad ass you think you are."

"Well I'd advise going in armed anyway." Squall said. "Let me know if you get anything interesting."

"Will do." Mika nodded before heading out of the office, almost colliding with Rinoa who was striding towards Squall like a woman on a mission, dressed in her cadet uniform complete with yellow bow and eye-catchingly short skirt.

"Hey Squall," She chirped as she entered the office, closing the door behind her. Squall barely afforded her a glance before resolutely returning to his work.

"Can't this wait Rinoa?" Squall asked without looking up. "I'm busy right now trying to optimise the chances of recapturing and dismembering your would be kidnapper. Remember him?"

"You should take a break from work sometime." Rinoa pouted. "I've barely seen you. Can't you just delegate this sort of busywork to spineless, low level flunkies? Or Xu?"

"Unlikely." Squall replied shortly. "I still owe her after delegating reports on the hotel siege to her."

"Well get Cid or Quistis to do it." Rinoa continued unwilling to back down. "We've barely spent any time together."

"Cid's got a meeting with the Garden Authorities and Quistis is too busy bouncing around on lover boy." Squall told her. "I don't have time for this. Close the door on your way out."

At this Rinoa's patience snapped. She stalked around the table and kicked the chair, with Squall in it away from the desk. Before Squall could react Rinoa was straddling him, keeping him pinned in the chair.

"Do you still need to work now?" Rinoa said before dipping her head and kissing Squall on the neck. "Or can we spend some time together now?"

"Are you quite finished?" Squall asked, resisting the urge to stand up and dump Rinoa on the floor in the process.

"What is your problem?" Rinoa demanded angrily, beginning to seriously lose patience as she hopped off Squall and faced him off with her hands on hips.

"My problem?" Squall countered pretending to think about it. "At the moment; you. I need you to get out of my face so I can finish my work. If you've got some excess energy go to the training centre or something."

"I might just do that." Rinoa snapped. "I'll work it off. I might even head to the secret area. Who knows what I'll do?" She treated Squall to a glare that would have put a Cockatrice to shame and spinning on her heel strode out of the room.

"Have fun." Squall called after her sarcastically before kneading his forehead and returning to his work. "Women!"

* * *

Major Marcus Foxton was a tall and well-built man. With close cut iron grey hair and watchful, intelligent, pale blue eyes he looked as if he was in his early to mid-forties. In reality Foxton was sixty two years old. He'd originally joined the Esthar military during the early years of Sorceress' Adel's reign and had fought his way up through the ranks, becoming the youngest Major in history at the tender age of twenty-nine. He'd become the commanding officer of Esthar Special Forces and was answerable only to Adel herself. In spite of this Foxton had never cared for the ambitions of world domination Adel harboured or of the extraordinary lengths she was prepared to go to. Foxton in himself was not a monster, he was a soldier.

Foxton's life had come crashing down around him twenty one years ago when a Galbadian prisoner named Laguna Loire had managed to unite the various anti-Adel movements, turning various minor irritants into one major one. Surprisingly enough they'd succeeded in capturing Adel and entombing her, and then for good measure they sent the tomb into orbit. Adel's government collapsed and every one eventually decided that Loire should become president for life. One of Loire's first acts was a crackdown of former Adel loyalists accused of war crimes. As far as Foxton was concerned he wasn't guilty of any war crimes but he wasn't going to hang around to see if the rest of Esthar agreed with him. He'd immediately upped sticks and headed off to Dollet. Nowadays he simply lived of the proceeds of his occupation as a gun for hire. Some might call that quite a step down from a war hero but as far as Foxton was concerned it didn't matter. Both jobs earned him money that could fold.

Foxton was just about to put on a record from his frankly vast progressive rock collection when there was a knock on the door. As far as he knew Esthar still had an arrest warrant out for him so as he headed for the door he pulled out his weapon of choice, a .45 "Dirty Harry" Magnum revolver, one of the most powerful handguns in the world. He opened the door slightly before jamming the gun back through his belt and opening the door wider to allow his guest to enter.

"It's good to see you again Major," Swift said as he installed himself in an armchair before uncorking a hip flask. He took a mouthful of bourbon before offering it to Foxton who took it. "I assume you know why I'm here."

"I think I can guess," Foxton replied in a barely noticeable Esthar accent. "But why don't you tell me anyway so we can cut the crap and get down to brass tacks here, what do you say?"

"I am here because your methods invariably produce the desired results." Swift said as he took the flask back and stowed it inside his jacket. "You're the best in your business and I need your expertise in a little something aimed at some very dangerous people. Maybe you've heard of them? The staff and pupils of Balamb Garden."

"You've come to the right guy." Foxton nodded. "Ever since Loire took power back home I've been looking for a little payback."

"Well there's someone in that establishment I want dead." Swift said calmly. "I'd do it myself but I have other, more important fish to fry. I suppose I can count on you to do that for me."

"You pay me I do it." Foxton said. "Do you want a clean kill or do you want to send a message?"

"I'll leave that to you." Swift said. "The primary target is called Dante Skyle. I believe you've already met his brother Mika."

"That's correct." Foxton replied. "My bullets made an excellent impression on his back."

"However I daresay you could get Squall Leonhart as well if you played it well." Swift continued. "I'm not about telling you what to do but I think I have a way to get both Dante and Squall together and ready for the killing."

"And how might I do that?" Foxton asked candidly.

"Think Major," Swift encouraged him. "How do you get people to come to a place where you call the shots? How do you lure them into an ambush?"

"Hostages." Foxton said. "And if I want to lure Leonhart and Skyle senior into an ambush the success rate will rest on who the hostages are. I'll need to go after people they care about. Any idea who's in the frame?"

"I would go after Mika." Swift said. "With any luck you might be able to finish what you started when you shot him. As for luring Leonhart, most people would go after his girlfriend Rinoa Heartilly, but she's a Sorceress and she could he hard to control."

"I can find a way around that." Foxton said unconcernedly.

"Good for you," Swift replied. "I however have been very busy of late and I've picked up an interesting nugget of information regarding a certain visitor who should be arriving at Balamb Garden around about this time tomorrow. Can you guess who that might be?"

* * *

Ellone Loire leapt out of the car before it had even stopped moving before throwing her arms around her adoptive brother. Squall stiffened at the public display of affection before returning the hug self-consciously.

"Come on misery guts," Dante called cheerfully from the side lines. "Put your sodding back into it."

"Button it!" Squall said warningly, pointing at Dante who simply flipped him off brightly, as untroubled as ever. "I do not need your colour commentary right now."

"Why are you so mean to me?" Dante enquired pulling a mournful face.

"Have you met you?" Squall returned, glaring at him murderously. "You're not a nice person."

"Oh words can hurt like a fist." Dante snickered before noticing Ellone. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"

"No, certainly not after what happened the last time you met one of my friends." Squall fired back, resisting the urge to land one on Dante.

"Fine I'll do it myself." Dante hopped off the wall he was seated on and practically danced over to Ellone. He took her hand and kissed it. "Greetings. I am Dante Skyle, an outside contractor that your brother simply _loves _working with."

"He also has Quistis upside down and on the train to happy land on a nightly basis." A voice called as Rinoa, Zell and Irvine approached, the latter giving what would've been a convincing impression of innocence if he hadn't been overdoing it. Squall's expression darkened even further and Dante preened outrageously. It was at that point Mika and Selphie returned from questioning the coastguard.

"He says he didn't hear anything, he didn't do anything and he didn't see anything." Selphie told Squall. "Dozy bastard."

"That's about the sum of it." Mika concurred. "It was a legitimate line of enquiry, it just didn't pan out."

"I don't want excuses." Squall thundered as Rinoa, Zell and Irvine headed back towards the Garden entrance with Ellone, Irvine dutifully overloading himself with Ellone's luggage, containing everything she would need for a month long visit. He promptly dropped it after going ten metres and told Ellone he'd come back for it later. In the next twenty minutes he would hijack a forklift truck.

"Is the canteen open yet?" Mika enquired of Squall. "I worked up quite an appetite listening to the coast guards show and tell me jack shit."

"Mika!" Dante exclaimed, putting on an overly dramatic show of shock that almost had Selphie crying with laughter while she and Squall headed towards the Garden. "I can't believe you said that. I should wash your mouth out with a bar of soap!"

"You know where you can insert your bar of soap." Mika retorted before heading around the back of the canteen to the delivery entrance. He opened it and flipped the light on. He was just reaching for a bottle of mineral water when there was a click behind him. Something poked him between the shoulder blades while something else, much sharper dug into his neck.

"Now you just stay still and do nothing stupid." A voice with a faint Esthar accent told him quietly. "Because I'd hate to have to shoot you. You know, again." The mystery man quickly marched Mika out of the storeroom, out of the Garden itself and towards a waiting car. Before Mika could react he was knocked unconscious and bundled into the trunk.

Foxton closed and locked the trunk before pulling out a mobile phone and dialling a number on his speed dial.

"That's one down with two to go." He told the man on the other end. "Is the place ready?"

"Everything is nearly ready." The man told him. "We juts need to fine tune a few things and finish setting it up. We need somewhere between forty five minutes and an hour."

"Call me when it's done." Foxton said before grabbing a long package from the back seat of his car. "I've still got two hostages to grab so I should be with you in a few hours."

"Roger that." The other man said.

* * *

Rinoa regained consciousness slowly. She looked around and quickly identified the room she was in. It was clearly the main eating area of the Balamb Bar and Grill, a popular meat based eatery in the centre of Balamb. It was darkened and closed today however. Rinoa couldn't think how she'd got here. The last thing she remembered was bidding Zell good night before heading for the training centre. She was clearly tied to a chair and her hands were cuffed with manacles that emanated a faint glow. Rinoa attempted to use some magic, but that only told her what she'd already guessed. The restraints were of the magic dampening Odine brand, designed to restrain Sorceresses.

"Rinoa?" A voice said and Rinoa turned her head to see Ellone tied in another chair a few metres away. "What are we doing here?"

"Someone's kidnapped us." Another voice said to Rinoa's left. She looked to see that it was Mika who was also restrained, but with chains instead of ropes. "I think it's the guy that shot me."

"How deductive of you Mika." A man said as he walked towards them, spinning a revolver in his hand. "I would advise you three not to struggle too much. You've got Claymore antipersonnel mines strapped to the bottom of your chairs and if you get to uppity I might be tempted to detonate them."

"What are Claymores?" Ellone asked.

"A curved layer of plastic explosives embedded with approximately seven hundred steel ball bearings." Mika replied distastefully. "They're usually triggered by proximity but I guess they've been rigged to be triggered by command instead."

"Very astute of you Mika." The man said as he checked Ellone's restraints. "Now, allow me to introduce myself. I am Major Marcus Foxton, former Esthar special forces."

"That's it isn't it." Rinoa said. "You've kidnapped Ellone because of what Laguna did to Adel. So that tells me why she's here, but why are we here?"

"Because I've been paid to take out someone." Foxton answered. "A guy named Dante Skyle. You are here Rinoa because I'm also interested in taking Squall Leonhart out. However you are important to my employer so don't worry, you won't die as long as you play nice."

"Your employer?" Mika echoed. "It wouldn't happen to be Swift Obsidian would it?"

"You're very quick." Foxton said. "Now shut up. I've got a phone call to make. Don't worry I'll put it on speaker."

"Who is this?" Squall demanded.

"Who I am is unimportant." Foxton said. "I do however have an answer to a question you are probably asking. Where, oh where are Mika Skyle, Ellone Loire and Rinoa Heartilly?"

"I don't know who you are…" Squall began but Foxton cut him off.

"The answer being is they are right here in front of me." Foxton continued. "So far they haven't been hurt and if you do what I say they'll stay that way. Am I making myself clear?"

"Yes, quite clear." Dante's voice came across the line. "I'm clear that you're a grade one whacko who is probably going to be feeling quite serious pain in the near future. What do you want? Money, release of prisoners or tasty brains?"

"Please don't try to goad me." Foxton replied. "I'm not the kind of guy that lets his temper interfere with my well laid plans."

"Is that a fact?" Dante laughed mockingly. "Well you can take your well laid plans and shove them up your well laid ass right before I kick it."

There was rustle of static on the other end while both Mika and Rinoa fought to keep their hilarity under control. Then Squall spoke again.

"Whoever you are, he wasn't speaking for all of us." Squall said, obviously trying to placate Foxton.

"That was unpleasant." Foxton replied. "Don't let it happen again. Now I'll tell you how we're going to do this. I want Squall Leonhart and Dante Skyle to come down to the Balamb Bar and Grill and negotiate the release of the hostages. No one else is to come. If they do, I will kill Mika. Then I will kill Rinoa and Ellone but not straight away. There are others things I'd like very much to do with them before they get a bullet through them. Am I making myself clear?"

"I'm clear." Squall said.

"And what about Dante?" Foxton asked. There was another rustle of static and then Dante's voice.

"Yippy-ky-yay mother…" There was a click and the line went dead. Foxton sighed and slid his phone back into his pocket. Then he grabbed the back of Rinoa's chair and started to drag it towards the backroom.

"Oi!" Mika yelled. "Where do you think you're taking her?"

"She's very important to my employer." Foxton replied. "Very soon all bloody hell is going to break loose, so I'm putting her in the meat locker for protection."

* * *

"Are you insane?" Squall roared at Dante. "This man is clearly a professional and you're trying to goad him?"

"No I'm not." Dante replied evenly. "I think this man could well be working for Swift. Swift chooses is people well and he only employs people who are complete professionals, the type of people who don't respond to insults."

"Well it's definitely a trap." Quistis pointed out. "So how do you want to play it?"

"If it is Swift that's employing this guy I don't think we have to worry about Rinoa." Dante said. "However we can't just go storming in all guns blazing. We need to be clever here. If I was this guy, I'd rig the place up with trip wires, pressure pads and oil drums. I'd also rig the hostages."

"So you're saying any frontal attack is doomed to failure?" Squall enquired. "I hope you've got another idea."

"Are there any other entrances or adjoining buildings?" Dante asked Quistis who shook her head.

"No adjoining building and there's one rear door." She answered. "However if this guy is in anyway competent he'll have booby trapped that as well."

"So this building is a nightmare?" Dante sighed. "That's encouraging. Is there any other way we could get in?"

"We're thinking about this all wrong." Irvine spoke up suddenly. "We're thinking about entering horizontally. Why not do it vertically?"

"You mean parachute onto the roof?" Squall mused approvingly. "He won't expect that."

"Well that's a good idea as well." Irvine clarified. "But I was thinking why doesn't Squall distract this bloke while Dante goes up through the floor? Dante can use thermal imaging to determine where to pop up."

"And how do you suggest we do that without setting off any booby traps?" Squall enquired.

"We use low level explosives to go through the floor." Irvine proceeded to explain. "There are tunnels under most of Balamb, built back in the days of the war with Esthar. If Dante pops up the hostage taker will never expect it, giving Dante the element of surprise."

"Not that's it's a bad idea, but I think I may have a better one." Dante said, looking contemplative. "How about instead of me popping up, I have the hostage taker drop in for a little chat with me."

"It kills me to admit this." Squall sighed. "But that's a really, really good idea. Do you have the ability to squeeze answers out of him or do we have to drag him back here."

"Oh please." Dante snorted. "I can torture someone with a stick of butter and a stuffed animal."

"Well good, but try not to kill him." Squall said. "We'll need him to answer questions."

"Sir," A SeeD entered holding a thick manila folder. "Voice imaging has got a match on the hostage taker."

"Major Marcus Foxton," Squall read. "Former Esthar special forces in Adel's day. Now he works as a sort of freelance mercenary, specialising in assassination, terrorism and hostage taking. He sounds like our guy. He's apparently about six feet tall and he uses a .45 Magnum revolver."

"Really?" Quistis asked. "Maybe it's just a weird coincidence but that's almost certainly the same type of gun that shot Mika."

"Is there any chance we can let him go and give him a medal?" Dante enquired lightly.

* * *

While Balamb Garden had been planning a response Foxton had not been idle. He'd booby trapped all the doors and windows with explosives as well as the skylight. Rinoa was still in the meat locker but Mika and Ellone were tied to a large oil barrel surrounded by lumps of plastic explosives. These explosives were connected to a pressure plate at the front door. Other oil drums and explosives were rigged to be detonated by tripwires or command. Foxton was currently sitting in a chair with his feet propped up on the bar.

"Why are you doing this?" Ellone asked, glaring at Foxton. "What do you get out of this?"

"Someone's paying me." Foxton growled. "That someone wants Dante Skyle and Squall Leonhart out of the picture and they're paying me a small fortune to make it happen."

"If you think for one moment you can actually kill Dante you're even stupider than I thought." Mika grunted. "Dante is one of life's constants."

"You're only saying that because you don't want your brother to be blasted to smithereens." Foxton replied. "I don't blame you but you'd better get used to the idea."

"I think I'll get used to the idea of Dante getting in here and feeding you your own heart if it's all the same to you." Mika growled. "I'd never tell him this, but he's a hard bastard and about as close to indestructible as it gets. He royally pissed of your boss Swift Obsidian and guess what? He's still walking, talking and annoying. How many people can claim that do you think?"

"Everyone gets lucky sometimes." Foxton shrugged.

"Yeah they do." Ellone said viciously. "Maybe you'll get lucky and Squall will chop your block off before I get a hold of a knife and personally ensure you won't be able to follow through on the thinly veiled threat of rape."

Mika winced.

"No one's told you how this works." Foxton continued. "You're here, strapped to a bomb and there's nothing you can do about it. Sooner or later you won't be here though. You'll be everywhere."

"And the award for most clichéd death threat of the year goes to the barbarian by the bar." Mika said. "Don't insult our intelligence. We know what'll happen when you push that button. This entire place will go up and SeeD, not to mention Esthar Intelligence will hunt you to the ends of the Earth and then some. There won't be a safe inch on the planet."

"But you are so wrong!" Foxton barked his temper showing for the first time. "I am employed by Swift Obsidian and that means I'm protected by him. I'm safe as houses. No one will be coming to save you. Think about that when this place goes bang."

**Author Commentary: Uh oh, what's going to happen? Well even I'm not sure but there will be a lot of mayhem. There's an exchange viciously plagiarised from _Die Hard With A Vengeance _that is very, very easy to find. Squall's workaholic attitude will beginning to grow in the next few chapters and his relationships with his friends (Rinoa and Quistis in particular) will begin to suffer. You might think Squall is acting vastly out of character but there is a reason and it's not his fault. That's all I can say for now. You might recognise Foxton from one of my less successful endeavours but believe me he's not a disposable villain that I've thrown in to pose an immediate danger to Mika, Rinoa and Ellone. His actions in this and the next chapter will have massive ramifications in later ones believe me. If you want a characterisation of Foxton, think of William Sadler in _Die Hard 2_. He's an old soldier turned mercenary but he has a sense of honour (albeit a slightly warped one) as well as a ruthless streak a mile wide. He's a mercenary but he's not pure evil, at least not in the strictest sense. That said however, you have not met the main antagonist yet and it'll be a while until you do. This guy is pure evil and he makes Swift (not to mention Ultimecia) look like the Easter Bunny. Actually on the subject of Ultimecia am I the only person who thought that the only place this game failed was the villain? She was a bit two dimensional and she lacked any real motivation. At least the two previous game's villains had motives. Kefka was just gibbering insane and wanted to watch the world burn while Sephiroth was dealing with his mummy issues and a god complex. While we're at it I'd like to clarify. Final Fantasy Eight was far, far superior to Seven in everything aside the villain. Sephiroth was a murdering, incest prone, self-delusional, megalomaniac who suffered from catastrophic schizophrenia but he still rocked. Thanks you so much for your reviews Dee and Bebedora (I'm glad you can draw parallels between my dialogue and one of my countrymen; although I consider myself Scottish as opposed to British). If I knew where you lived I'd send you a fruit basket. I'd appreciate another review to tell me what you think beyond words, and anyone else who wants to leave one go right ahead. The next chapter will be maybe a little light on action but I will kick it into high gear very soon.**

**~Ally Todd **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight: Violent Solutions**

In order to minimise the chances of Foxton killing the hostage's only three people would head to the target building, Quistis would coordinate the mission from inside a van parked just outside Balamb. Squall would make contact with Foxton while Dante, accompanied by Irvine as a non-participating support man would head through the tunnels. Squall was carrying the Revolver as well as a knife up his left sleeve and a small handgun strapped to his ankle. Dante however was completely unarmed as he was relying on the element of surprise to get the edge on Foxton. Just in case Irvine was also carrying a sawn-off shotgun. Squall had impressed that Foxton was to be taken alive if at all possible.

Irvine dug a knife under an access point to the tunnels and prised it open before handing Dante a flashlight. Dante headed in first to check it out; just in case it had collapsed but it looked like the Balamb Resistance to Esthar had done a bang up job when they built the tunnels. Dante shone the light up ahead and heard the skittering of disturbed rats. Something scurried by Dante's foot and he stomped it, before he realised it was just a spider.

"Sorry little friend," He said to the grey smear. "I'm a little on the jittery side. Come on Irvine, its clear."

Irvine joined Dante in the tunnel and they started forwards slowly, Irvine using a thermal imaging camera to gauge their general position. They moved in silence for at least ten minutes before Irvine decided to break the tense silence.

"So how do you actually know this Swift guy?" He asked. "Are you old friends or something?"

"Or something." Dante replied shortly. "It's not the easiest subject for me to talk about and I'd rather not. All you need to know is Swift is a guy I made the mistake of trusting and if you piss him off, run like hell. You might as well spend the last few seconds of your life doing something."

"You'll forgive me but you're looking far from dead." Irvine said. "How did you manage to walk away?"

"That's one thing I'm not going to talk about." Dante said. "Maybe one day I'll open up about it but I wouldn't hold your breath. Everyone has their demons and mine are the type that'll rip my life apart if I let them out. Enough about me, what's your story?"

"I've been compared to James Bond." Irvine said brightly. "I think that's because my two areas of expertise are women and guns. Anything you need to know about them, I'm your guy."

"Thanks for the heads up," Dante said. "But I think I'm doing okay on the women front. As for guns, well I've lived off a MAC10 for the last few months so I think I'm good there as well.

"Military Armaments Corporation Model 10." Irvine said knowledgeably. "Compact, rapid fire, blowback operated machine pistol. Used sparingly by Galbadian Special Forces during the First Sorceress War, but never saw widespread use due to its weight and rapid fire capability." A beat. "It's what I do."

"So in the gang, you're the assassin?" Dante enquired.

"I prefer sniper." Irvine replied. "Assassin just sounds so…"

"Truthful." Dante completed smoothly. "I've got no problem with killing people who deserve it. You're an assassin and I'm a big believer that you shouldn't hide from it. To take a life is a huge thing to do but if you're like us you won't hesitate. If you hesitate, you're the one that's killed. I've killed people and I'll never forget it but I'm sure that it was the right decision. This guy, if it comes to that I'll kill him in a heartbeat and I sure as hell won't do it with kindness."

"You're not best pleased with him are you?" Irvine observed, noting the murderous look on Dante's face.

"The only person who gets to screw with Mika is me." Dante replied. "That's my right as his big brother and if Foxton thinks he can take that away from me I will remove him from my life which may well result in me removing him from his."

"We do want to talk to him." Irvine reminded him. "So do try to curb your homicidal impulses."

"I'll try but it's no biggie if I happen to accidentally on purpose off the guy." Dante shrugged. "Trust me on this Irvine. You'd be surprised what you can find out from a corpse."

"Okay," Irvine shrugged and followed Dante onwards. Dante's ominous mood did nothing to alleviate Irvine suspicions that Dante was going to make Foxton an offer he wouldn't survive. Not that Irvine cared much. Foxton was clearly dangerous and he was holding two of Irvine's friends and one potential friend so if things went wrong no power on Earth would be able to stop Irvine from blasting Foxton's head off. Squall had decided that Foxton may have some information but as far as Irvine was concerned Foxton needed to be stopped, if necessary by a twelve gauge blast to the chest.

"So where did you learn unarmed combat?" Irvine enquired. "Don't get me wrong, if I lose my weapon I'm far from helpless, but you're about to go up against a former special forces officer with no weapons."

"I might as well tell you." Dante shrugged. "As well as ruining my life, Swift trained me. I was always a good fighter but he helped me refine my art and now I'm practically a walking weapon."

"He trained you?" Irvine echoed.

"Hey I'm not boasting here." Dante said defensively. "If I'm Anakin Skywalker than he's the genuine Pyscho Wan Kenobi."

"Faulty metaphor." Irvine said. "My taste in video rentals is a tad more risqué than Star Wars but from what I understand Anakin actually turned out to be the bad guy."

"Irrelevant." Dante waved a hand dismissively. "My point is, when I start fighting Foxton won't know what's hit him."

"Yippee." Irvine muttered under his breath. "That sounds like a right old giggle."

"Keep what I just told you to yourself." Dante advised. "If Squall found out he's probably get it into his head that I'm a double agent working on Swift's behalf."

"Do you know how he managed to walk merrily away from being impaled the way he was?" Irvine enquired.

"No idea." Dante said bluntly. "I'll say this though. Swift is man of many talents. Some are pretty useless; some are dangerous and most are bloody amazing."

* * *

Squall came to a halt across the street from the Balamb Bar and Grill before he turned on his radio to give Dante, Irvine and Quistis an idea of how the frontal assault was going. He was smart enough to know the front door was probably booby trapped so he pulled out a tennis ball and threw it as hard as he could across the street to his the door. He was right.

With an ear splitting explosion the door and the tennis ball were blasted into oblivion. Squall timed his run and before Mika, Ellone and Foxton could recover from the unexpected blast he was standing in the doorway. Foxton had dived behind the bar for cover, and Ellone and Mika were tied to a large oil drum. Squall couldn't see Rinoa but he could see maybe dozens of tripwires and pressure plates, including the one that was two steps inside the door.

"Squall" Ellone yelled seeing her brother standing in the doorway. "Be careful. He's got detonators."

"I'd listen to your sister Commander." Foxton yelled from behind the bar. "She seems smart as well as smoking hot. Drop your weapons and come inside. Watch the tripwires and pressure pads."

"Forget it," Squall said. "Where's Rinoa?"

"The meat locker." Foxton announced. "Don't worry she's not dead. She's just worth more to Swift Obsidian alive. The meat lockers brilliant actually. It's practically bulletproof. Step inside and I'll show it to you."

"Forget it Foxton." Squall snarled. "Are you going to come quietly or am I going to have to get unprofessional?"

"You know my name?" Foxton observed, not the least bit unperturbed. "That burns a bridge or two. Still I'm not exactly threatened by you two. Speaking of which I assume Dante Skyle is with you. I can't see too well from my current position."

"He's on his way." Squall stated, just as Irvine communicated that he and Dante were in position.

"But he's not here." Foxton observed. "I'm afraid that qualifies as noncompliance. That results in a penalty."

"NO!" Squall yelled before diving for cover as the window to his immediate left exploded with a deadly hailstorm of glass. Squall picked himself up and was able to see Mika and Ellone were clearly terrified but unhurt. Foxton had stood up and had his revolver pointed at Squall.

"Drop your weapons and come in Commander." Foxton said. "Be careful where you put your feet. There are a few tripwires and pressure plates but you have my word I didn't conceal any."

Squall sighed. He had to stall and make Foxton move so Irvine and Dante knew where to place their charges so he placed the Revolver on the ground along with his belt kit and knife before stepping inside.

"And the gun at your ankle." Foxton said sternly. "Do you think I've never seen a film?"

Squall complied, tossing the gun outside before coming slowly and carefully towards Foxton. He was also cursing whatever higher power that had made him agree to a plan that's chances of success rested with a maniac like Dante Skyle.

* * *

"Okay," Irvine pointed the thermal imaging camera upwards and examined the screen. On it were five red blurs, indicating people. Three were stationary, most likely indicating the hostages. One was moving slowly from the direction of the door towards the fifth which Dante was prepared to guess was Foxton. Irvine moved until the crosshairs on the screen were centred on Foxton before handing three low level charges to Dante. These were designed to break down walls or doors with minimal threat to occupants of the rooms. Irvine had calculated and guessed that if there were any bombs in the room they wouldn't be set off by the blast. Dante pressed the charges into the roof of the tunnel before backing up slightly. Irvine set the thermal imaging camera and took up his position with shotgun in one hand and detonator in the other.

"Ready?" He enquired to which Dante nodded. Irvine took a deep breath before pushing the button on the detonator. There was a dull _whump_ and the roof of the tunnel came in, bringing Foxton with it. He however reacted quickly. He swung his revolver around and shot Irvine in the chest. The sharpshooter was blown off his feet and sent flying back.

Before Dante could receive similar treatment he lunged forwards and kicked Foxton's guns from his hand. Foxton pulled out a knife and swung at Dante tearing his shirt. Dante backed up to avoid a thrust before charging forwards. His shoulder impacted with Foxton's chest and knocked him backwards. Foxton retaliated with a punch to Dante's face that lacked power but still stung. Dante kicked Foxton in the chest and then in the face knocking him own. Foxton attempted to crawl towards his gun but Dante seized him by the feet and dragged him backwards. Foxton kicked backwards but Dante still managed to drag him away. Foxton freed himself and leapt upright ready to continue the fight.

Squall meanwhile had retrieved his knife and was cutting Ellone free. Even though Ellone's immediate instinct was to get the hell out of there she stayed where she was, mindful of the booby traps. Squall freed Mika from his chains by shooting the locks open before heading for the meat locker. He shot the lock off before wrenching the door open. Rinoa stumbled out, shivering slightly but no worse for wear.

"Come on," Squall said as he handed her his jacket. "Let's get the hell out of here."

Foxton tackled Dante, bring him down and he managed to get on top. Straddling Dante he raised his knife but Dante wasn't about to fight fair. He balled up some spit and got Foxton square in the right eye. Then he lashed upwards with the feel of his hand, snapping Foxton's head back and knocking him off. The former Estharian major was still swearing and clawing at his face so Dante sprang to his feet and kicked him hard enough in the ribs to launch him against the tunnel wall. Dante kicked Foxton's knife out of his hand before grabbing him by the lapels and slamming him against the wall. Foxton jerked his head forwards, butting Dante in the face before hitting him twice with two rapid fire punches and booting him in the ribs. Dante rolled aside as Foxton launched a lethal kick to his face and Foxton's boot punched into the tunnel wall. Dante seized the opportunity and nailed Foxton with a two footed kick that knocked his off his feet.

While Foxton was stunned Dante seized him by the lapels and hauled him back before shattering nearly every bone in his face with a right cross. Foxton could do nothing but simply take the beating and Dante wasn't about to stop. He continued punch Foxton, intent on beating him to death. It was only when Mika looked into the tunnel and yelled at Dante to stop that he did so. He grabbed a miraculously still conscious Foxton by the jaw and squeezed savagely until the bones creaked.

"You go after my brother again…" He began before Foxton cut him off by spitting in his face.

"Yeah?" A thoroughly bloodied Foxton sneered. "What are you going to do about it?" Mika winced and looked away.

"This." Dante replied before grabbing Foxton's head sand wrenching left and then right, snapping his neck with a sickening crunch. Foxton dropped to the ground, dead as a coffin nail.

Squall approached the ambulance and armoured van that were serving as the meeting point. Rinoa, Mika and Ellone had all been given the all clear and bomb disposal were about to start clearing the Grill.

"How's Irvine?" Squall asked Quistis when he reached her. "I heard Foxton shot him in the tunnel?"

"Kevlar took it." Quistis confirmed. "He's got cracked ribs and minor internal bleeding and he refused to go to hospital. That stubbornness will be the death of him I think."

"And Dante?" Squall asked, wondering why he gave a damn in the first place.

"A few cuts and bruises, maybe a few bruised ribs." Quistis said. "It's no major threat to his general health. He's probably suffered worse. Mind you, it's fair to say he looks better than Foxton."

"Show me." Squall said.

Foxton had been dragged back along the tunnel and dumped on the ground by Dante and you only needed one look at his badly twisted head to see that he wasn't going to be disclosing any information. His face as bloodied and Dante wasn't looking very remorseful to say the least.

"Oh wonderful!" Squall barked. "You went and killed what could've been a goldmine of information. Bravo Dante, bravo."

"I told you he'd have a go at me." Dante said to Mika and Rinoa in an undertone before standing up and facing Squall off. "Squall, darling. This may be too much for your pea sized apology for a brain to process but do your best. Sometimes you can learn more from a corpse than a live person. You with me so far?"

"Get to the point Dante." Squall said between gritted teeth.

"Righty-ho then." Dante seized Foxton's body by his combat jacket, dragged it upright and started rooting through the pockets. He found a butterfly knife, some paper money, a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Then he came across a mobile phone. "Lookee here."

"Amazing," Squall observed woundingly. "He carried a mobile phone. What a breakthrough?"

"Well now isn't that interesting?" Dante grinned. "Number one on the speed dial. I wonder who that could possibly be."

"No Dante," Mika exclaimed making a grab for the phone, but Dante dodged and fended him off. "Don't provoke him!"

"Good evening Major," The familiar voice said on the other end of the line. "I trust you did the job."

"Wrong boy toy!" Dante returned, grinning like a loon.

"Dante," Swift sighed in faint annoyance. "I must say, you've surprised me. Where's Foxton?"

"Foxton? Oh he's right here." Dante replied, now looking positively manic. "He's a great guy. I think he's come down with something though. He isn't looking at all well. There's blood everywhere and his heads almost wrenched clean off. That's can't be good. What's up Swift? Cat got your tongue?"

"You shouldn't have." Swift said after a pause.

"Say where are you?" Dante continued. "I can bring Foxton right over so you can see him. Last goodbyes and all that."

"You have no idea what you've just done." Swift said ominously.

"Oh did I put a kink in your master plan?" Dante went on. "Whoops. Oh well, silly me. Would it help if I were to prostrate myself before you and beg your forgiveness?"

"Dante, do you think for one moment I don't have a plan B?" Swift enquired lightly. "And if that fails a plan C, and if that fails a plan D…you know how the alphabet works don't you?"

"Yeah I do." Dante said it pleasantly before his face and voice hardened. "Bring it on. I don't think I'll ever get tired of watching you fail rather spectacularly."

"That was very clever." Squall snapped as Dante hung up. "Now you've only succeeded in provoking him. Do you actually have a plan regarding Swift or are you just playing it by ear?"

"I killed Foxton." Dante replied. "He wasn't ready for that and we'll have time to prepare for whatever he's got coming up next. The way I see it I did you a favour. If you don't like the way I do things, you can quite frankly sod off." Dante made to leave but Squall caught his arm.

"I'm not finished here." The Commander said.

"No you really are." Dante replied before twisting Squall's arm and forcing him to bend double. With another twist Dante could break Squall's arm or dislocate his shoulder. Both were too drastic so Dante let Squall go but gave him an explosive shove to show he meant business. "Never use force unless you are certain you will win. Now I'll make this quick. You say you want information from me but so far I haven't seen anything to make me believe you deserve jack shit. You want information, how about you start treating me with respect. Until you swallow your pride I've got no use for your attitude, so stay out of my way. Next time, I'll dislocate your shoulder." He stormed towards his motorcycle and kick started it.

"You know Squall…" Quistis began.

"If you tell me he's got a point I'd suggest you start typing your resume." Squall growled.

* * *

"Do you reckon I was too hard on him?" Dante asked as he climbed into bed with Quistis.

"Maybe," Quistis murmured as she wrapped an arm around his chest. "But it's not like he didn't need to hear it. Squall hasn't been treating a great deal of people with the respect they deserve lately. You know the SeeD that I mentioned dying? Squall said some stuff at the wake that would've earned anyone else a mouthful of blood."

"So you're on my side on this one." Dante asked as he gently kissed Quistis on the forehead.

"I don't think threatening to dislocate his shoulder was a brilliant idea," Quistis amended patiently. "But by and large I'm backing you on most things that happened today."

"Right well here's one you won't like." Dante shrugged. "You know when I said I had no choice in killing Foxton, that it was self-defence. That wasn't exactly the truth. I was on the point of beating him to death when Mika stopped me. Then Foxton spat in my face, and he did kidnap my brother so I sort of lost control."

"Well I'm all for saying he deserved it." Quistis said. "Rinoa's been in this game for four years, and I guess Mika's been through similar in his time. That said however, Ellone was there and she's an innocent. God knows what kind of effect this'll have on her. If I'd gotten a hold of Foxton I would have torn his heart from his chest."

"Remind me not to piss you off." Dante said. "So what do you reckon Swift's plan B is this time?"

"How should I know?" Quistis said. "You're the one who knows the guy. What's his modus operandi?" She noticed Dante's face darken just noticeably. "What?"

"Swift is an animal." Dante replied slowly. "The only way to beat an animal is to be just as vicious. Here's the thing though. Swift is not the worst animal out there, not by a long shot."

"What are you talking about?" Quistis asked wondering if Dante was about to open up about his past.

"Swift has one brother at least, and I've met him." Dante said, his voice and eyes haunted. "His name is Alexander and he lacks Swift's code of honour, his morals, his honesty…everything. Alexander is pure evil and believe me I know."

"What did he do to you Dante?" Quistis asked. "Please tell me. That's the only way I can help you come to terms with it."

"You can't help me come to terms with what he did to me." Dante said, hard angry tears glittering in his eyes. "Nothing can."

"You can at least give a chance to try." Quistis replied, hugging Dante. "You need help Dante. You can't bottle things up and deal with everything by yourself."

"I can't say it." Dante sobbed, tears running down his face. "If I say it that means I was really there. That means it was real."

"What Dante?" Quistis pressed. "What are you talking about? Where were you? Let me help you please. I can't stand seeing you like this. Talk to me. Where were you?" Dante simply stared at her until one word left his lips.

"Hell."

* * *

Mika was meanwhile running laps around the main hall until he noticed Rinoa sitting on a bench and wiping her eyes. Mika shrugged before jogging over to her. Rinoa didn't notice him straight so he opted to dive straight in.

"Hey," He said scrutinising her closely. "Are you okay? You seem kind of, oddly perturbed."

"Just leave me alone." Rinoa said glaring up at him. "This is none of your business. I didn't ask you to come over."

"No you didn't." Mika said, sitting down next to her. "You weren't hiding, so I could see you're upset. Some people might just walk on by but that's not my way. I can help if you'd let me. Tell me what's going on."

"It doesn't matter." Rinoa said with too little conviction to make Mika back off. "It's unimportant."

"Right," Mika snorted doubtfully. "It's unimportant and yet it's got you worked into this state. I'm going to ask you again and maybe this time you'll tell me the truth, or at least give it a little more conviction which to be fair can't be hard. What's going on?"

"It's Squall." Rinoa confessed. "As you can imagine he wasn't best pleased with what Dante said to him. Irritated doesn't cover it. Someone who's irritated doesn't chuck a wobbler and smash his room up."

"Well while I can relate to being pissed off by Dante that doesn't sound like a good day out." Mika grunted. "Take me through it all, start to finish. Don't leave anything out."

"Okay well I'm sitting in my room doing this essay." Rinoa began. "Squall comes stumbling in, so drunk he can hardly walk. I still don't know what he was yelling about but I tried to get him into the shower to sober up. He doesn't like that much and then he starts puking his guts up. That really sends him over the edge and he staggers out of the bathroom, gets a hold of a gun blade and starts cutting up everything he can reach. He eventually passed out on what was left of the bed which to be honest wasn't a great deal. I decided to get out of there and here I am?"

"And there was no warning preceding this meltdown?" Mika enquired. "He just went off on one."

"That was what was so bad." Rinoa continued. "Squall's a bit volatile at times but he never loses it like that. He was completely out of control. What should we do?"

"We are not going to do anything." Mika said. "I don't want to take any risks so you're staying at mine tonight. Don't argue. It's happening."

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea." Rinoa said. "If Squall found out that I'd stayed with someone else, particularly a male someone else he'd flip a shit."

"Do I look like I give a damn?" Mika said bluntly. "If you can't handle being in the same bed as a guy then I'll take the floor. Just know this. I'm not Dante. My ultimate goal is not sex here. Now come on."

"How are you and Dante related?" Rinoa enquired as she followed Mika off towards the dorms.

"Like I know." Mika replied.

* * *

**Author Commentary: Okay Squinoa fans, please count to ten before declaring blood vengeance on my house. Yes, Squall has flipped and entered full scale alcoholic meltdown mode. Things are going to get much worse though, believe me. I particularly enjoyed writing Dante as a vulnerable, damaged and profoundly unhinged article and I'll build on his history with Swift and Alexander in the next chapter. Things are going to be rough for the Quistis/Dante relationship and the Squall/Rinoa relationship but at least Rinoa's got Mika to keep her company. The gang are eventually going to notice their illustrious leader's problems but Quistis and Selphie will have their own problems to deal with, leaving the "level heads" of Zell and Irvine to help Squall out. This ought to be good. I also enjoyed writing the Foxton vs. Squall and Irvine and Dante scene. Who thought that Foxton killed Irvine? Nobody I know. If I was to kill a character I'd do it in an epic way, not at the hands of some second rate heavy. Swift will strike back sooner or later and you'll know all about it when he does. Thank you very much to my readers and reviewers, Dee and Bebedora. You guys keep me going so thanks a million for your continual support and feedback. I love you guys. The next chapter could be a few days because I'm going out tomorrow night and then I'm going to see a Rugby match (Scotland against South Africa) on Saturday. Until then, keep reading and reviewing (hint hint).**

**~Ally Todd**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine: Morning Routine**

It had taken Quistis the better part of two hours and half a bottle of Jack Daniels to calm Dante down sufficiently so he could sleep. She'd kept an eye on him throughout the night and despite the fact that Quistis was used to staying awake for prolonged periods of time she needed food. She gave the sleeping Dante a once over before heading for the canteen. She ordered a bacon roll and some fresh orange juice for herself before piling a plate high with bacon, sausages, hash browns, black pudding, toast, eggs and fried mushrooms for Dante. She guessed that a good amount of food might help him and stop him from doing something stupid.

When Quistis returned to her room Dante was nowhere to be seen. Quistis briefly contemplated panic before she heard her shower running. She set the breakfast down on her desk and tore a chunk out of her bacon roll before washing it down with a mouthful of orange juice while she waited patiently for Dante to emerge. Maybe five minutes later he did that, his skin an attractive pink shade from the hot water. He evidently hadn't bothered with a towel and he came to a halt when he saw Quistis. He sighed.

"You know, you should really knock." He smirked confidently. "What if I was indecent?"

"I've seen it all before." Quistis replied, slightly disappointed. The broken, haunted mess Dante had been the night before was gone and his armour was back on. "I got you breakfast."

"You're a goddess." Dante replied as he jammed a slice of black pudding into his mouth before chewing on it with relish. "You're, like the goddess of girlfriends."

"You're welcome." Quistis said as Dante started getting dressed, in between demolishing sections of his breakfast. "You're not going to like what I'm about to say, but we seriously need to talk about last night."

"I thought you might say that." Dante said noncommittally. "If I were you I wouldn't go there."

"Sorry but that's not going to wash." Quistis replied, striding forward and poking him in the chest. "I think it's fair to say that you're very important to me, on the level that your problems are mine. So I really need to know what you meant when you said you were in hell. That place is usually reserved for dead people and you're rather lively."

"That's what she says to all the boys." Dante quipped. "Look Quistis, you're better off not knowing anything about Alexander Obsidian. I'm not trying to hold out on you…"

"Let me guess, you're trying to protect me." Quistis cut him off. "I think I can handle it."

"Maybe you can," Dante nodded as if Quistis had made a fair point. "But where Alexander's concerned there are no guarantees. He's a psycho on an absolutely massive scale and the only person who can deal with him with any degree of success would be Swift and I'm guessing that course of action is out."

"We don't want or need a course of action with Alexander." Quistis replied sardonically. "It's Swift we're dealing with. Do you think it's possible that Alexander could help us with him?"

"Oh it's definitely possible." Dante laughed cynically. "That said it's the last thing I'd suggest. If you were to ask Alexander for help, he'd want something in return and it's odds on that it'll be either something you don't want to give him or something you can't give him."

"Are you sure you're not just saying that because you disagreed with the guy once upon a time?" Quistis asked.

"It's because I disagreed with him once upon a time that I know exactly what the man is like." Dante said angrily. "Now much as I enjoyed this little chat, I have to go. I've got things to do. If I don't thump Mika soon I'll start to get withdrawal symptoms. Thanks for the breakfast."

Quistis cupped her face in her hands and groaned in frustration. Then a thought hit her. If Dante wasn't going to tell her the truth maybe it was time to consult someone else. Someone who knew what they were talking about. Someone who wouldn't hold back, regardless of how much Quistis wouldn't like what she was told. Someone who had a perpetual ear to the ground.

* * *

Rinoa awoke slowly and momentarily wasn't entirely sure where she was. Then the memory of the night before crashed over her like a tidal wave. She covered her face and groaned as she remembered Squall's destructive meltdown. She looked over and saw Mika lying on the floor, wrapped up in a sleeping bag with his mouth wide open as he snored in a manner that Rinoa would later liken to the nasal equivalent of Hurricane Gilbert. Rinoa rolled out of bed and gently toe poked Mika, who mumbled unintelligibly and rolled over.

"Mika!" Rinoa called but he paid her no mind, so Rinoa quickly stepped into Mika's bathroom and ran a glass of water. Then she dumped it on Mika's face. He awoke immediately. Rinoa smirked. "That got your attention."

"Thanks for that." Mika growled as he used his saturated sleeping bag to wipe his face. "I was having a good dream."

"Really?" Rinoa smiled wickedly. "Was I in it?"

"Maybe a cameo." Mika grinned playing along with the joke. "Oh alright, maybe it was a Rinoa feature film."

"Is that right?" Rinoa laughed. "I need to get dressed and shower so can I use your bathroom? You haven't got much to do but I've got class this morning and I can't really afford to be late."

"You were kidnapped by a raving psychopath yesterday." Mika pointed out. "You could argue that you're not up to it."

"Yeah but I'd probably have to endure some counselling if I took that excuse to my instructors." Rinoa shrugged. "I don't really fancy telling a shrink about my unhappy childhood."

"As opposed to oh say, your alcoholic boyfriend?" Mika enquired offhandedly, cocking an eyebrow at her. "If you want I could sit him down and possibly talk him round."

"I doubt he'll listen to you." Rinoa muttered. "In all fairness he doesn't trust you or Dante, and I think it was Dante's kill first, ask questions later or not at all approach to Foxton that pushed him over the edge. Personally I think it'd be better if Irvine or Zell were to talk to him."

"You're probably right," Mika sighed. "But you'd be surprised at how persuasive I can be."

"Don't do anything stupid Mika." Rinoa cautioned him. "That won't help me. Just promise me you won't go after Squall."

"I can't promise that I'm afraid." Mika shrugged. "You see, one thing I hate more than anything is a bully. I saw you last night and you were seriously frightened so I guess it's high time myself and the illustrious Squall Leonhart had a talk. Maybe Zell, Irvine and my Philistine of a big brother could join us."

"Is there any point in me trying to talk sense into you?" Rinoa asked arching a single slender eyebrow.

"Oh you could persuade me, there's no doubt about that." Mika nodded. "Just please don't. I happen to think I can fix Squall's attitude problem and I think that the less involved you are the better."

"Well don't be surprised if you don't manage it." Rinoa warned. "Squall's a very stubborn person."

"He's an amateur compared to yours truly." Mika assured her. "If there's one thing I took away from having a grade one moron as a brother it's my ability to shrug off a few million setbacks. Now tell me where I might find Zell and Irvine."

"The canteen." Rinoa said without a nanoseconds hesitation. "They love their food. Selphie and I have this theory that they're both trying to become wider than they're tall."

"Good oh!" Mika chirped. "If you see Quistis, or indeed my barbarian of a brother could you mention that I'm looking for him?"

"I'm fairly sure this is a bad idea," Rinoa said. "But I'll let him know. Whatever you tell Squall, please leave my name out of it. I don't need him giving me crap for getting you involved."

"You didn't get me involved." Mika reminded her. "I'm just a guy who can lend a hand if you'll let me."

"I'm not entirely sure that I'm letting you right now." Rinoa said. "All I know is based on your current frames of mind I trust you considerably more than Squall."

"That makes me all fuzzy and warm inside." Mika replied. "Trust me on this Rinoa, I have the ability to make Squall go teetotal and stop acting like a gun blade wielding basket case. It won't be easy and it really won't be fun for Squall but hey, I'm not using kid gloves because he went insane and started hacking up your room."

"What are you going to do?" Rinoa enquired with a little trepidation. "Torture him?"

"Not exactly." Mika grimaced. "I'm not known for using torture to sort my problems out. That's Swift Obsidians bag, and Dante has developed a bit of a flair for it himself. I however can control him. All I need from you is your permission to knock Squall into shape."

* * *

Squall had awoken in the ruins of his room suffering from a splitting hangover and with Rinoa nowhere to be seen. Squall was still grinding his teeth and muttering under his breath when he stepped into his office. His mood wasn't helped by what happened next. The door swung closed as Zell stepped out from behind it and dropped Squall with a hard right cross. It was a nasty punch but not the jawbreaker Zell could've thrown if he'd really wanted to. As Squall hit the ground, Irvine stood up from behind his desk, while Mika emerged from inside a cupboard and Dante leapt through the window he'd been hanging out of. They surrounded Squall.

"Might want to stay down." Mika growled as he looked down at the Commander who was cupping his jaw and glaring up at them.

"Or you'll do what?" Squall said threateningly, pulling himself into a sitting position.

"You don't want to know what we'll do." Dante said mildly. "You've been a naughty boy and we are here primarily to fix you at the request of someone who cares about you. Why, I have no idea but that's irrelevant."

"What makes you think I need fixing?" Squall gritted out. "While you're at it, what makes you think pounding me into a bloody mess will work?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but our ringleader today is Mika." Dante clarified cheerfully. "I usually make a point of doing the opposite of what he says, but that's not the case today. Mika says no torture, and we're only to get violent if you're unreasonable."

"Let me give you all one valuable piece of advice." Squall said. He forced himself to his feet and with a soft click a butterfly knife was pressed against Mika's larynx. "Don't ever threaten me."

"Thanks for the advice." Mika said before seizing Squall's knife arm and twisting it away from his throat. Then he seized Squall by his shirt front and threw him bodily across the room with his free arm. Squall impacted solidly with the wall. He bounced off and landed on his desk with a heart stopping crash, before rolling off onto the floor. Then Mika pinned Squall to the floor with a boot on the chest. "Don't ever threaten me either."

"Now that's cleared up I think we should have a drink." Dante crossed to Squall's desk and opened a few drawers. One refused to open so Dante simply whipped out a handgun, shot the lock off and opened the drawer. He rooted through it and withdrew a bottle of Jack Daniels. "Lookee here, enough whisky for all of us." Then with a flick of the wrist he tossed the bottle out the window. "Whoops. Not any more."

"Are you insane?" Squall barked furiously as he redoubled his attempts to get free. "What did you do that for?"

"I believe he suddenly felt that he didn't need a drink." Mika informed him. "He also felt that you didn't need one either. Or ever again while we're at it. I passed your bedroom on my way up here. You should lock your door these days. I doubt a rampaging rhino could've wrecked the room more effectively. Anything to say about that?"

"You know what's confusing me?" Squall snarled. "What does this have to do with any of you?"

"We're only here because we care about you friend." Dante explained before shooting a glance at Irvine or Zell. "Or because they do. I'm here because I'm hoping you'll be noncompliant so I can give you a right hiding."

"Like you could." Squall said.

"You have no idea what I'm capable of." Dante growled as he crouched down and examined Squall with polite interest. "I already have a reason to tear your head off and shit down the hole so I'd be extra nice to me if I were you."

"I'm quaking in my boots." Squall sneered.

"You're being unreasonable again." Irvine pointed out. "I think I ought to let you know, I'm happy for the brothers Grimm to pummel you into a bloody mess as long as we get the old you back."

"Then you're an even bigger fool than I thought." Squall retorted.

"Okay bored now." Mika pulled out a large black pistol with an oddly wide muzzle. He sighed before pulling the trigger, a tranquiliser dart embedding itself in Squall's chest. "Dump him in one of the cells. We'll re-evaluate in twenty four hours."

"I guess Quistis' will be in charge until Squall's himself again!" Dante crowed. "My girlfriend's the boss lady of this establishment. Sometimes I love my life."

"Actually she's not." Zell spoke up. "Quistis left about half an hour ago. She said she had to check on something?"

"She left?" Dante echoed. "Where the hell did she go?"

* * *

It was nearly dusk when Quistis reached her destination. She was surprised at how long it had taken her. She was clearly not as fit as she thought she was and unfitness could be deadly, especially in Centra where walking around after dark was considered an extreme sport. Quistis knocked on the heavy wooden door that signified the entrance to Edea Kramer's rebuilt orphanage. It had taken a full SeeD construction team a not inconsiderable amount of time to restore the old stone buildings to their former glory.

"Quistis!" Edea exclaimed as she pulled the door open. "Come on in. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?"

"I'll give you three guesses." Quistis smiled as she stepped inside. "As is so often the case with yours truly I'm looking for some answers to a few problems and I need someone with an ear to the ground that's tuned into the nastier corners of the world."

"Last time I checked I had the parameters." Edea nodded. "I may not be a sorceress anymore but there are people in the world that won't let that technicality stop them."

"Well if you ever need our help dealing with bounty hunters, paid assassins and the like you only have to pick up the phone." Quistis reassured her. "We'll make them offers they won't survive."

"Not in front of my kids you won't," Edea said warningly. "But that aside you say you've got questions. I'll happily answer them if I can. Would you like a glass of wine? It's from our own vineyards."

"Why not?" Quistis took a glass of red wine and sipped it before nodding approvingly. "It's good."

"You've always been looking for knowledge." Edea mused as she sat opposite Quistis. "Even when you were here, you were always asking me what makes things work and so forth. Enough of memory lane however. Fire away."

"Recently we've been having a few problems." Quistis began. "A man by the name of Swift Obsidian has been giving us trouble, and we have reason to believe that he's after Rinoa in particular. We have a couple of sources that have told us some stuff about him, but not enough and we were wondering if you might know anything, and judging by the look on your face you know exactly what I'm talking about."

"Do you know that the name Obsidian applies to at least five siblings?" Edea asked.

"You know them?" Quistis asked.

"I know of them." Edea clarified. "I know of the existence of Swift and his sister Alice, and I know there are more. Back in the day, a friend of mine tried to set me up with Swift, but I was more of a sucker for the bad boys. This was BC of course."

"BC?" Quistis echoed before catching the amused look Edea was shooting her way. "Before Cid."

"Two points to Quistis." Edea smiled.

"You say you didn't go out with Swift because you preferred bad boys." Quistis continued. "Well I have reasons to believe that Swift is not exactly an angel. He showed up and ripped out two security guards hearts, broke another's neck and then left a fourth lying on the ground with his head ten metres away from the rest of him. He subdued Squall with only minor difficulty and was able to walk away from being impaled on a wall with a section of door panelling. Then, just to top it off he attacked Doctor Kadowaki with a surgical saw and vanished until one of our associates managed to get him on CCTV jumping into the ocean."

"Who's perfect these days?" Edea reasoned, although her voice was utterly devoid of conviction.

"Well from what I've heard another one of the siblings, Alexander is a bad guy. Full on, black hat, soon my destructo-beam will destroy Metropolis bad." Quistis stated. "We already know what Swift is capable of. You mentioned someone named Alice. What's her story?"

"There's very little on this family but I'll tell you what I know." Edea nodded. "As far as I know Alice is the youngest and the only girl. No one knows where she might be but I doubt she's having difficulty with her life. Having four or more older brothers must have toughened her up. That's the sum of my knowledge. Your turn, you mentioned Alexander. What's his story?"

"I wish I knew." Quistis sighed. "As far as I can tell Alexander is considerably worse than Swift. Any idea how that might be the case?"

"Well this is the first I've heard of him so I can't shed any light." Edea replied simply. "As for Swift, I've heard that relatively speaking he's a good guy. Hear me out. He's a man of honour and he's known to be very honest, even trustworthy. He respects life and very rarely kills anyone he doesn't need to. He's honourable and if I were trying to get a hold of him I'd make absolutely sure he doesn't feel threatened. It's been my experience that guards at Balamb Garden are seldom very finessed so I'm guessing that he killed them because he felt threatened."

"It was thanks to him that Rinoa, Ellone and one other were strapped to bombs yesterday." Quistis said. "If that's not the mark of a psychopath then what it is?"

"When it comes to torture, black mail or other unseemly methods Swift doesn't get his hands dirty." Edea replied. "He uses other people. I doubt he told the culprit to use bombs and hostages. He is by and large and honourable man."

"Can you possibly put me in touch with Alice?" Quistis asked. "We badly need to know what we're dealing with."

"I would if I could." Edea answered. "I've never even spoken with her directly. I've just heard of her. I could try and get a hold of her but no promises."

"It's okay." Quistis nodded. "I knew it was a long shot." It was at that point that her phone buzzed. She pulled it out of her pocket and checked the display. It was as she had guessed, Dante. She flipped it open. "Hello?"

"Where the hell are you?" Dante barked down the line, sounding less than pleased.

"Somewhere safe." Quistis replied evenly. "I'm doing what could be called homework on the Obsidian family. For example did you know Swift and Alexander have a younger sister named Alice?"

"I didn't know that and frankly the friendly neighbourhood psychos are not my biggest problem right now." Dante yelled. "You go AWOL right when we need you back here badly."

"Why?" Quistis exclaimed, mentally compiling a list of things that could wind Dante up this much. "What's wrong?"

"I'm a bit hazy on the details but as far as I can tell Squall went spiralling off the rails last night." Dante explained. "I'm ashamed to say I was probably a factor but that's irrelevant. Upshot is Mika, Zell, Irvine and I decided that it would be best if Squall took a little time off."

"Meaning?" Quistis enquired icily.

"We shot him with a tranquiliser dart and dumped him in the detention block." Dante explained. "We also relieved him of his duties as Commander. You're next in chain of command so I think it'd be useful it you'd come back now, if not sooner."

* * *

Squall came to slowly and was immediately aware of the pain in his chest. It took his mind about two minutes to accurately process what his eyes were telling him. He was in a cell that resembled the ones in the detention centre. Judging by the pain in his chest and the red mark at the source he guessed he'd been shot in the chest with a dart containing powerful sedative. He remembered Zell, Irvine, Dante and Mika ambushing and promptly gave himself over to a violent temper tantrum, turning himself into a tangle of libs and shouted obscenity. He looked up when he'd vented to see a SeeD standing outside his door.

"Keep the racket down." The SeeD told him coldly. "If you don't I'll put you out again."

"Excuse me?" Squall spluttered as he got to his feet. "I'm the commander, so I'd like to hear you address me as sir, and see a salute or two at the appropriate moments."

"Actually you've been temporarily suspended from duty." The SeeD informed him calmly. "So I do not need to address you as sir or salute. I'm sorry but that's the way it is."

"Let me out." Squall hissed, his voice strangled by supressed rage. "If you don't I will personally see to it that your career will be burned the moment I'm reinstated."

"You don't have the power to do that." The SeeD replied. "If you want out, I'll happily call Instructor Dincht and Irvine Kinneas down here so you can take it up with them. It's their authority that's keeping you in here until Instructor Trepe returns and assumes command."

"Where is she?" Squall demanded. "Did Zell and Irvine send her away so they could ambush me?"

"I don't have the answers." The SeeD informed him. "Now please keep the noise to a minimum.

Squall seethed as he sat down heavily on the bed. Zell and Irvine had turned evil a lot quicker than Squall would've guessed, and what's more they'd joined forces with Dante and Mika in order to instigate what was, all things considered a coup. When Squall got out of her heads were going to roll, starting with the brothers. It was funny how their arrival had coincided with Swift Obsidian turning up and causing mayhem. Squall stood up.

"Guard!" He yelled. "Come here. I want to see Dante Skyle down here immediately."

"I'm sorry but no can do." The SeeD yelled back. "Maybe I wasn't clear. Instructor Dincht and Kinneas are in charge."

"Fine, whatever." Squall shouted. "Call them and impress them that I want very badly to talk to Dante. Make it very clear that I'm not going to give up until I talk to him."

Fifteen metres later, Squall looked up to see Dante standing in front of the cell. Dante gestured at the SeeD to unlock the door, which did nothing for Squall's mood. Now he was outranked by an outsider as well. Dante opened the door and Squall charged across the cell, hoping to knock Dante and the SeeD aside. He came to a sudden, bone wrenching stop as Dante seized his wrist and twisted it around before pressing it against his carotid artery, threatening him with unconsciousness. Then he tossed Squall back into the cell and followed, the SeeD locking the door behind him.

"Don't worry," Dante stated calmly. "I'm not going to hurt you, unless you try that again."

"I have questions." Squall said facing Dante off aggressively. "You'll answer them fully and honestly am I making myself clear?"

"You are really having trouble with the whole "suspended from duty" thing aren't you?" Dante said. "Allow me to break it down for you. You have absolutely no power in this establishment. Even the junior class men outrank you. You have no power over me and the sooner you accept that, the easier it'll be on you. Capice?"

"Why am I here?" Squall demanded, fighting to control his rising temper. "What am I supposed to have done?"

"Well let's brainstorm on it shall we?" Dante suggested. "Tell me Squall, have you done anything silly recently?"

"Not throwing you out of this establishment the minute you got here springs to mind." Squall bit off.

"I'm sorry that's incorrect but you do win this year's supply of turtle wax." Dante goaded him. "Let me jog your memory. Last night you got totally wasted, probably because I killed Foxton, self-defence by the way, who you saw as your ticket to dear old Swift Obsidian. You came home and then, for some reason flew off the handle, started chopping your room up and scared the hell out of your girlfriend in the process. Sound familiar?"

"Are you telling me you've never done stupid things when you're drunk?" Squall retorted.

"The last time I was drunk I put bananas everywhere. Weird but harmless." Dante replied. "I think it's fairly obvious you've got a problem. You're on your way to becoming a full scale alcoholic."

"I've got a high stress job!" Squall barked. "I've got to have something to take the edge off."

"Allow me to suggest mini-golf." Dante countered, smiling that infuriating smile of his.

"Don't tell me you're about to start preaching about the devil drink?" Squall snarled as Dante banged his fist against the door. "Alcohol is harmless."

"When you get Rinoa to believe that, give me a call." Dante said as he walked out the door. Squall immediately tried to follow but Dante lashed out with a back kick that hit Squall square in the abdomen, knocking him backwards. "You never learn do you?"

"Give me time." Squall muttered as the door was closed and locked. "Time's all I need."

* * *

**Author Commentary: Squall's behaviour is not just to do with an alcohol habit believe me. I've seen a lot of drunks in my time, I've frequently been among them and I maintain there's nothing wrong with getting a bit blitzed every so often. I've never seen a drunk chop up his bedroom and scare the living hell out if their partner so believe me there's something else at work here and sooner or later you're going to find out what. Believe me it's bad, and not just for the good guys it's bad for everyone. You may have picked up on Edea's reference to Alice Obsidian. That makes three that are important, and now there's two to go. All the siblings have their own specific personalities that will come out with time. The next chapter will be pretty action packed by anyone's standards and you'll see the high tech weapons that Swift paid twenty million for in use. I've been looking forward to chapter ten since I started this fic (double figures, yay me). You may also see a little more of the burgeoning friendship between Mika and Rinoa as well as a little more romance between Dante and Quistis if you're into that sort of thing. I'd like to take this opportunity to shamelessly plug the primary influence for this fic, _Legacy of the Chimera _by Peptuckand I'd also like to thank my readers and reviewers Bebedora and Dee. I hope you guys will leave another review and I implore others to follow their lead, even if it is to flame me to within an inch of my life. Thank you all so much and feel free to review my other fic if it takes your fancy. It's a good ensemble piece. Until next time,**

**~Ally Todd**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten: Attack**

There was a knock on Mika's door and he rolled off the bed to answer it. Rinoa entered accompanied by Ellone who was looking slightly skittish. Who could blame her Mika thought, especially considering what had happened the last time the three of them had been in a room together.

"Mika Skyle, this is Ellone Loire." Rinoa said making the introductions. "Ellone this is Mika."

"You don't need to introduce us." Mika pointed out objectively. "We were all tied up together by a murderous nut job. My personal favourite part of the ordeal was Ellone threatening to castrate the bastard."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that." Rinoa said. "As of now however we have a problem a little closer to home."

"Squall." Mika nodded. "Apparently Dante visited him in the detention block. In between ill-conceived escape attempts Squall wasn't too keen on the fact Irvine, Zell, Dante and I acted with the greater good in mind. So, I think it's time be initiated plan B. Ellone, what say you?"

"Well I think it'd help if you could explain to me what exactly plan B entails." Ellone replied, resisting the urge to add "duh" to the end of her sentence.

"We've tried the hard way." Mika said. "Judging by what the guards in the detention centre told Zell and Irvine we only succeeded in enraging him further. So I've decided we should go for a different approach that I like to call "creative persuasion". If Dante was here, he'd be pushing for waterboarding but being the blunt instrument he is, he fails to see that there are other ways."

"Simply put we need someone close to Squall to talk to him. To find out what's really going on." Rinoa stated. "He won't talk to me, because he was with me when he blew his top."

"You think he'll listen to me?" Ellone snorted. "Rinoa you're an only child so I think you need to read up on the sibling dynamic."

"I've got a brother." Mika broke in. "Granted; a short tempered, wilfully lethal, libido driven barbarian but I can always work him out and he'll always listen to me even if he doesn't like what he hears. If I can work out Dante, you can work out Squall no matter how much of a bastard he's being."

"I'll give it a go but I'm not hopeful." Ellone sighed. "Maybe this is just a phase that Squall's going through. It wouldn't be the first time."

"Here's hoping." Rinoa smiled and raised a hand as if proposing a toast. "Thanks Ellone. I owe you one."

"Talk to Zell or Irvine." Mika told Ellone. "They're as desperate as you are to sort out whatever it is that's eating Squall so they'll jump at the chance to let you talk him round."

After Ellone left Rinoa ran a hand down her face and sat down on Mika's bed. She looked up at Mika who was keeping a wary eye on her as he dismantled and reassembled his M16 with practised ease.

"Thank you Mika," Rinoa said quietly. "Thanks for helping me out with Squall. If there's ever anything you need from me, you only have to name it."

"Glad to help." Mika waved her tanks aside. "I'm not doing it just for you. Squall's a hero, no matter how much he hasn't been acting like it over the last few weeks. The world needs people like him and I feel almost obligated to help him out. Lucky me huh?"

"That simply proves that you're a decent guy." Rinoa reasoned. "It also goes some way to people drawing the same conclusion about your brother. I've had very limited contact with the guy but he seems to make Quistis happy. He may be impulsive and a little abrasive but his methods seem to provide the desired results."

"He has his uses I'll admit." Mika shrugged. "It doesn't stop him being a complete douche bag, which is conveniently one of his strengths but family, what can you do?"

"You don't have to talk to me about dysfunctional families trust me." Rinoa smiled in spite of herself. "I've got you beaten."

"Is that a fact?" Mika said, trying unsuccessfully to read her expression. "I like a challenge. How so?"

"You've heard about my career path before I became a cadet here." Rinoa asked. Mika shook his head so Rinoa elaborated. "I was a member of a Timber Resistance Faction known as the Forest Owls. That's how I met Squall. We hired SeeD and he was a team leader. The dysfunctional bit was my father. I was part of an anti-Galbadian faction and he was the head of the Galbadian Military. Now, he's President."

"Okay you've got me beaten." Mika nodded reluctantly. "That's bad. Father and daughter on different sides of what could very easily become a war. That's really bad."

"You're telling me." Rinoa laughed humourlessly. "I hope you're not going to get involved with this problem as well. I understand you wanting to help but this is a bit private for an intervention. I'll deal with it myself."

"I guess it's in my interests to forget you ever mentioned it then." Mika said offhandedly before noticing Rinoa's eyes growing brighter. "Hey, you okay?"

"It's just…" Rinoa took a deep breath to compose herself before continuing. "It's just that the last few years with Squall have been the happiest of my life. I have no idea why he's suddenly changed so drastically. Was it my fault? Did I do something? If so, what? I just don't get it."

"There's a word for that mentality." Mika said, sitting down next to her and putting an arm around her. "It's called rot. The problem here is nothing you've done, it's the way Squall's acting and you'd be hard pushed to find someone who disagrees."

"Thanks Mika." Rinoa murmured, closing her eyes and resting her head on his shoulder. "There are not a lot of people who'd do this much for someone. You ought to be careful. People will start to think you're trying to get into my panties."

"And rescuing the girl in questions relationship with her partner is a time honoured method of seduction." Mika grunted candidly. "I just don't like seeing people take things so hard on the chin."

* * *

Squall was pacing his cell and occasionally abusing Zell, Irvine, Mika, Dante and a partridge in a pear tree at the top of his lungs for a bit of variety. He'd just finished a particularly creative and colourful tirade when his cell door was unlocked.

"Back away from the door!" A voice yelled as it was opened. Squall sighed before backing up as it was opened. The first thing he saw was the business end of an assault rifles pointed at him. The second was Ellone who walked in.

"Hello Squall," She sounded cheerful but her expression was the opposite to say the very least. "How are you doing?"

"I've been in worse prison cells but at least I didn't design those." Squall replied cantankerously. "That said, I'll be okay. The acoustics are pretty good. I wouldn't hate a chair."

"Oh wonderful." Ellone said. "Sarcasm. Come on then little brother. Let's hear it. I haven't got all day."

"Sorry Ellone but you're going to have to give me more than that." Squall bit off, evidently enjoying pushing her buttons. "I'm drained from lack of food and water, sleep deprivation. That sort of thing."

"Don't play dumb with me Squall Leonhart." Ellone said, striding forward until they were nose to nose. "Out with it! Why are you being such a word class douche bag?"

"Why are you being such a world class douche bag and getting involved?" Squall demanded. "I didn't ask you to horn in on my personal problems."

"No you didn't." Ellone snapped back. "Mika and Rinoa did. They seem to genuinely want to help you." Only one word seemed to have registered with Squall.

"Mika!" He snarled as he wrung an imaginary neck. "Why am I in no way surprised? What gives him the right to join in?"

"He's a decent guy and right now you're not fit to lick his boots." Ellone barked. "Look at the change Rinoa wrought in you. That was nothing short of miraculous and now you're going to throw it away for the sake of a couple of minds. Have you completely taken leave of your senses?"

"Maybe," Squall's face hardened. "And if that's the case maybe it's not such a good idea for you to piss me off."

Before Ellone could retort the lights went out all over the Garden. All at once, without any warning the entire Gardens power grid went down. After a few seconds, green emergency lights clicked into life, lighting the detention centre dimly. The guard headed for the entrance but it burst open before he got there. A figure dressed entirely in black strode forwards. The guard raised his rifle but the figure was carrying a length of chain. He lashed out with it and it wrapped around the guards neck. Then he yanked on it, breaking the guard's neck with a sickening crunch.

Ellone however had not been slow. In the aftermath of the Second Sorceress War she'd taken self-defence classes and she was relatively well versed in hand to hand combat and marksmanship. She dodged a chain strike and seized the guard's rifle. Before the mysterious assailant could attack again she lifted the weapon with remarkable speed and fired. She drilled him in the chest with four shots before finishing him off with two shots to the head. She looked at Squall.

"You coming?" She asked before heading off down the corridor, rifle at the ready. Squall shrugged and followed before heading for the locker where his weapons were kept. Ellone reluctantly shot the padlock off and Squall slid a knife up his left jacket sleeve before hefting the Revolver.

Zell, Irvine and Quistis were standing by the directory when the power went out and the mysterious assassins attacked. Quistis reacted quickest and she immediately blasted the nearest attacker with a powerful sequence of electric bolts, followed by a blast of fire and then finally her potent Laser Eye ability.

Zell and Irvine ducked under blows from the chains and attacked. Irvine jammed the muzzle of his pump action shotgun under the nearest attacker's ribcage and pulled the trigger. The shell ripped down the barrel and into the attacker's thorax. His chest exploded in a shower of bone chips and dark red blood. Zell lashed out, his foot knocking one of his targets backwards. Then he leapt forward and wrapped his legs around the unfortunate intruder, pinning his arms and started to reduce his head to a bloody pulp with a sequence of thunderbolt punches.

Cid emerged from the lift noticed another one of the attackers advancing on Irvine's blindside and committed to a charging movement. They crashed to the ground and Cid seized the attacker's chain before wrapping it around the man's neck and started to throttle him mercilessly. Then he locked one arm around his victim's neck and pressed the other against the back of his head. Then with one powerful twist he snapped the man's neck like a twig. Not for nothing was Cid one of the highest ranking inhabitants of a mercenary enclave. There was a surprise in store. As the man dropped there was a loud crackling and flashing of arcing circuits.

"Cyborg!" Quistis yelled. Before they could investigate the body Zell looked up and practically swallowed his tongue in fright. Dozens of identical cyborgs were crawling over the main halls glass roof, and in there hands were…

"Heads up!" Zell yelled as the cyborgs blew the roof in with frame charges and started to rope down directly after the glass. Zell, Irvine, Quistis and Cid dived for cover from the deadly hail of glass. Zell, Irvine and Quistis were unhurt but as Cid landed next to them he cried out in pain as a long shard of glass sliced into his left bicep. Cid wrenched the glass out and tossed it aside before tying his necktie around his arm just above the wound.

"Are you injured?" Quistis asked him.

"Just hurt." Cid said as the cyborgs started to spread out. "Don't make a case out of it. Ready?" Without waiting for an answer Cid rushed the nearest cyborg, howling like a wolf for added effect. Zell and Quistis headed after him.

Irvine decided to go after several cyborgs that were headed for the infirmary. They were so intent on getting there they didn't notice Irvine until he'd shot two dead before they even knew they'd been attacked. Irvine advanced, firing as fast as his pump action allowed. Only one cyborg was left standing when Irvine ran out of ammo. Instead of utilizing the small armoury inside his trench coat he charged forward, shoulder blocking the cyborg before battering him in the face with the butt of his weapon. The cyborg staggered back but before Irvine could press his advantage an enormous lightning bolt promptly incinerated the cyborg. Irvine looked around and immediately identified the culprit.

"No one messes with my Irvy!" Selphie shouted.

Rinoa had been coming out of the library when the alarms had started whooping. She turned towards the dormitories before a black clad figure dropped in front of her swinging a length of chain. Rinoa was taken aback by the sudden appearance and that gave the cyborg all the opportunity he needed. He lashed out with his chain and it snared Rinoa's ankles, upending her. As she went down she let fly with her Blaster Edge, loaded with the Valkyrie projectile. The cyborg simply sidestepped it as it flashed past and then sidestepped again as it returned to Rinoa. Before she could launch it again the cyborg stomped on her arm pinning it to the ground while he pulled what looked a lot like a stun gun from his belt. There was suddenly a loud clang and the cyborg dropped, revealing Mika who had evidently belted it over the head with a long, iron candleholder.

"Nasty sort of fellow," Mika observed as he gave Rinoa a hand up. "Lucky for you I was passing by."

The cyborg staggered to his feet and charged at Mika, stun gun at the ready. Mika however honoured him with a roundhouse kick to the kidneys before blasting the cyborg with an uppercut. Rinoa stared as the cyborg somersaulted over backwards. Then Mika exerted all his considerable strength and tossed the cyborg into the fountain. Then he picked up the dropped stun gun and turned it on full blast before tossing it into the fountain, electrifying the whole pool. Even cyborgs can be electrocuted.

"How…how…" Rinoa stammered before composing herself. "How the hell did you do that?"

"People frequently underestimate what gym sessions on an almost obsessive level can do." Mika said. "Come on, we've got to find the others. If Dante's encountered these guys he'll be leaving a huge trail."

Dante was currently in the training centre, having assisted a short sword wielding cadet dispatch a particularly large and bad tempered T-Rexaur. All in all it hadn't been the greatest struggle ever. Dante had simply blinded it with two well placed bursts from his AK-47 and the cadet had repeatedly hit it with his sword and Fire spells until it stopped moving. They were just heading for the exit when one of the cyborgs entered and came swiftly towards them.

"Down!" The cadet yelled, shoving Dante to the ground as the chain whistled through the air that had been occupied by Dante's head. Dante was spitting out earth as he looked up to see the cadet deflecting the chain swipes. Dante forced himself to his feet mad as hell. As far as he was concerned, a SeeD cadet saving his life was a personal insult. He strolled towards the confrontation and seizing the short sword by the crosspiece on the hilt hurled it at the cyborg. It hit the cyborg in the midriff and as it fell backwards there was a crackling sound and his entire torso erupted in flashes of arcing circuits. Dante knelt down and pulled the sword out and handing it to the cadet.

"Get out of here pronto." He advised quietly. "You're not going to want to witness this."

Once the cadet was out of earshot Dante pulled of the cyborgs balaclava and recoiled slightly. His head was shaved and his face was concealed by a featureless metal plate. Etched on the middle of the plate was an eerily accurate representation of a small bird in flight. A swift, to be exact. Dante grimaced. That put paid to any argument about who exactly had sent these things. He dug his fingernails under the plate and managed to peel it off, revealing a profoundly human face underneath, the metallic teeth and red blinking eyes notwithstanding. The eyes still shone and it was pretty obvious the cyborg was in serious pain.

"Good, you can feel pain." Dante observed grimly. "That makes everything so much easier. Can you speak?" The cyborg didn't reply so Dante stood and flipped the safety catch on his AK-47 to single shot. "Let me help you with that." Then he fired a round into the cyborgs shoulder from point blank range. The cyborg groaned in pain and raised his hands in a gesture of supplication.

"Please stop…" He pleaded in a distinctly mechanical voice. Despite the voice, most people would feel moved to take it easy. Dante however was not most people.

"Excellent we're making progress." Dante observed, before ominously cocking his gun and aiming it between the cyborgs eyes. "What does Swift Obsidian want?"

The cyborg elected to stay quiet so Dante sighed, propped his gun up against a nearby tree and crouched in front of the cyborg examining it with polite interest. The cyborgs facial structure couldn't show a wide range of emotions but fear was particularly noticeable. That was the way Dante liked it. Anyone scared thought twice about lying.

"You're a cyborg aren't you?" Dante enquired rhetorically. "I'm curious about how much programming Swift Obsidian gave you before he sent you out here. Tell me, are you familiar with the name Dante Skyle? No? Okay, what about the phrase biting off more than you can chew?"

"What…what the hell are you talking about?" The cyborg was in a bad way but Dante wasn't in a sympathetic mood.

"You don't know that one?" He said, putting on a passable tone of surprise. "Okay what about, oh God my leg, my leg?" Before the cyborg could even react Dante stomped savagely on his ankle with one foot while stomping on the knee with the other. The metal parts of the cyborg obviously didn't include his legs. There was a loud crunch and the cyborg screamed bloody murder.

"Oh God!" He howled at the top of his lungs as he clutched the shattered limb. "My leg!"

"See, now we're communicating." Dante said, picking up his rifle and loading a fresh magazine before pulling the action back. "What else should we talk about?"

* * *

"This sucker wobbles, but he won't fall down!" No one was particularly sure where Cid had found a golf club, but they were more focused on staying alive. The portly Headmaster was savagely belabouring a cyborg, attempting to floor him.

"Cid!" Squall yelled as he and Ellone emerged from the detention area. "Go for his feet."

Cid immediately switched his target and with one well placed swipe he took the cyborgs feet from under him. The cyborg hit the ground and Cid started to lay into it with a will, shouting very colourful abuse and disturbingly graphic threats at the top of his lungs. Several witnesses would later swear blind they'd heard Cid threaten to cut off a cyborgs head and throw it in his face.

Zell and Squall had elected to put their differences aside temporarily and they teamed up to become a single whirling dervish of destruction. Zell punched one cyborg in the face, before dropping it with a high kick to the head. Before it could recover Squall decapitated it with a hard blow. He rolled to avoid one of Zell's typically kamikaze charges. The brawler thundered into a group of the cyborgs battering the aside like ninepins. He started to pummel the nearest cyborg into a sludgy substance. Squall was about to attack the others when there was a deafening explosion that immolated nearly a dozen cyborgs. Squall looked around to see Selphie standing just outside the lift carrying what looked like a bazooka. Squall was temporarily deafened by the blast but he had a fairly good idea of what Selphie was yelling as she pumped a fist in the air.

"Woo-hoo!"

It was at that point Rinoa and Mika added their contribution to the mayhem. Mika went low, grabbing a cyborg around the thighs before propelling him backwards and smashing him down on the directory with enough force to shatter his spinal column. Rinoa however had gone for the grand effect. She floated a few inches off the ground, thanks primarily to the huge, white feathered wings that had sprouted from her shoulder blades. One cyborg swung a chain towards her. One of the wings curled around Rinoa and deflected the chain and Rinoa grabbed the cyborg. She conjured a small purple light from nowhere and it slid into the cyborgs chest. Rinoa floated away, leaving a cyborg behind that was apparently no worse for wear. Then Rinoa clicked her fingers and the cyborg exploded. The next two didn't suffer much better treatment. They were lifted twenty feet above the ground, and Rinoa's will touched their central operating systems, more accurately, their self-destruct calibrators. They dropped to the floor and exploded among their fellows.

"Mika!" Dante yelled as he reached his brother. "I had a thought about how we deal with these guys. Come with me."

"Okay, just wait a minute." Mika said as he shoulder blocked a cyborg knocking it to the floor and then stomped it's head in. "I have to grab Rinoa."

"I don't think you should worry about her." Dante said, pointing at Rinoa who kicked a cyborg under the jaw with enough force to send his head flipping end over end across the hall.

"Good point." Mika said as he followed Dante away from the main bulk of the fighting. "Hey hang on, where are we going?"

"The armoury." Dante replied. "I had a thought. These guys work primarily on electricity so the ideal attack on them would definitely be an…"

"EMP," Mika completed, the light of comprehension crossing his face. "An electromagnetic pulse."

"The dawn of understanding." Dante chuckled darkly. "Now the primary way to cause an EMP is to set off a nuclear bomb, but I'm not interested in turning Balamb Garden, not to mention everything within ten miles into radioactive grit. The secondary way would be to overload transformers on Balamb Garden premises but that would have the minor side effect of sending Balamb Garden back to the Stone Age."

"So what do you suggest?" Mika said while Dante shot the lock on the door to the armoury.

"I was talking to Irvine and he let slip that Balamb Garden had taken delivery of some very interesting ordnance." Dante gestured to a couple of large crates. Mika opened them and grinned at his brother.

"This is good."

Even with Rinoa's Sorceress powers bolstering their side of the battle, Squall, Ellone, Quistis, Zell, Irvine, Selphie and Cid were still vastly outnumbered and they were beginning to tire while the cyborgs seemed to have vast reserves of strength and stamina. Quistis and Cid were being boxed into a corner, Blue Magic, a chain whip and a golf club doing little more than delaying the inevitable. Quistis' back had just touched the wall when something flew across her field of vision. Before she could identify what it was, it exploded. It certainly wasn't a high explosive grenade, or a flash bang. She couldn't recall ever seeing a detonation quite like that. Every cyborg with five metres however instantly collapsed, ran in circles or simply fell apart. Quistis looked around to see Dante and Mika throwing what Quistis guessed were the EMP grenades they'd bought from the Esthar Munitions Bureau. They'd cost a pretty penny, but (and maybe Quistis' was biased as she'd seen Dante naked) she couldn't think of a better opportunity to test them. To everyone's surprise it certainly struck a chord with Squall.

"Now that's more like it!" He yelled over the detonations. "Looks like you two have your uses! Fucking brilliant so it is!"

"I'm glad you're satisfied." Dante bit off, apparently not in a forgiving mood. "I think we have a bit of a problem. The problem is the answer to a question I think all of you must be asking yourselves. Who decided to send in cyborgs to fuck our operations up even more?"

"And that would be…?" Cid asked.

Dante grabbed a cyborg and pulled his balaclava off, revealing the metal face plate and the inscribed image of a swift. Cid recoiled visibly and across the room Irvine swore softly as a highly pregnant silence fell. It was eventually broken by Dante.

"Who do you think?"

**Author Commentary: Sorry this took so long but this chapter went through quite a few different incarnations and it took an industrial bout of insomnia to allow me to finish it (I'm writing this at 2:39 in the morning). I will try to bang them out quicker but I knew going into this fic that a chapter every three days or so was a pretty tall order. However, I will not allow that to get me down so yay me! I did say this chapter would have a lot of action so I hope I delivered on that front. There were also more hints at the burgeoning friendship between Rinoa and Mika. Squinoa fans, please form an orderly queue for the torches and pitchforks because that will be built on massively in the next few chapters. I particularly enjoyed Rinoa exhibiting her Sorceress powers and Cid armed with his bare hands and a golf club is my personal highlight of this chapter. As for the EMP idea, what does is say about me that I would attempt to set one off if I was being attacked by cyborg chain fighters? While we're on the subject, this chapters antagonist were influenced heavily by (if not stolen outright) similar articles in the Angel episode "Lineage". Thanks a million to all my readers and reviewers, especially Dee and Bebedora, especially the latter without whose encouragement I probably would've started slitting my wrists and chugging bottles of bleach. Please read and review even if is to give me the first of many venomous death threats I will undoubtedly receive soon. Until then, love life, get paid and then get…maybe I should leave it there. I don't want angry dads turning up on my doorstep and kicking my head in because I gave their little darlings my warped idea of life advice. Peace out.**

**~Ally Todd**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven: Counterattack**

Once again Squall called a council of war in his office. In attendance were Quistis, Dante, Mika, Zell, Irvine, Selphie, Cid and Rinoa. They were all dressed in their battle clothing and were armed to the teeth, all except Zell. Everyone else carried their principal weaponry as well as a selection of side arms and vicious looking combat knives.

"I don't think I'm alone in thinking that this whole thing with Swift Obsidian has run its course." Squall said. "I'm tired of him pulling stunts like turning up in the small hours unannounced, kidnapping hostages then strapping them to bombs and sending a small army of cyborg assassins in to kidnap Rinoa."

"Well we're all tired of it." Zell broke in, an ugly look on his usually handsome features. "What do you suggest we do about it?"

"Well of it's not too radical a suggestion I suggest we head out, find him and kill him." Squall said. He guessed Dante would have something to say about that course of action and he wasn't disappointed.

"If it was that easy I would've have done it a long time ago." Dante spoke up simply. "You don't find a guy like Swift. To risk another movie cliché, he finds you. Fortunately, that doesn't apply to his associates. I would advise starting in Dollet."

"Why Dollet?" Quistis asked.

"There's a guy, a bar tender there." Dante explained. "He's not so much an associate as a guy who permanently keeps an ear to the ground. He's not good with people so I suggest you hang back and let me do the talking."

"Okay so we start in Dollet." Squall said. "Cid, I need you hear to hold down the fort. Dante, we'll use your expertise to track down Swift. When we find him, Mika and Irvine will find a sniper post, like we did in Deling City with Edea. Quistis and Selphie will provide some magical covering fire and Zell and I will do the heavy lifting, helped by Dante and Mika should the need for them arise."

"That's all very good," Rinoa broke in sardonically. "What do I do? Sit around here knitting cunning sweater sets."

"Can everyone leave while I have a quick word with Rinoa?" Squall enquired. An unreadable look flashed across Mika's face but he didn't pass comment. He just followed all the others as they trooped out.

"You're not staying here Rinoa." Squall told her. "It would be just like Swift to swoop in here and abduct you while Balamb Garden's finest are out looking for him. This establishment is the second most secure building in the world. You're going to the most secure. You're going back to the Presidential Palace in Esthar with Ellone."

"What?" Rinoa exclaimed.

"Calm down Rinoa," Squall said calmly but firmly. "I can't focus on killing Swift if I have to worry about you. I need you to be safe and I know that staying in the Presidential Palace is the safest you can be, albeit in the same building as the ultimate moron himself, Laguna I'm as stupid as I look Loire."

"Has it occurred to you that I could help you take him down?" Rinoa demanded furiously. "Hello Sorceress. Or had you forgotten?"

"You're not helping us take him down and that's final." Squall told her. "Swift wants you and if you were to turn up that would be akin to hanging yourself over to him, gift wrapped and on a silver platter."

"I can handle myself." Rinoa insisted.

"Maybe but I'm not prepared to risk it." Squall said. "You're going to the Presidential Palace and that's final. Now you can either stamp your foot, throw a tantrum and sulk, or you can just accept it. The end result is the same. If it makes you feel better you can take your own personal bodyguard as long as they're not already occupied."

"Fine," Rinoa sounded as if she was skipping the foot stamping and tantrum throwing heading directly to the sulk. "I want to take Mika."

"Did you hear the part about your choice not being already occupied?" Squall asked lightly.

"And what is he doing in your little plan?" Rinoa enquired loftily. "Providing Irvine with companionship in a sniper post and jumping into a fight with Swift should the situation call for it? Come on Squall, credit me with some intelligence. If you, Zell and Dante can't take Swift down, then it's highly unlikely Mika will make much difference."

"Okay, alright." Squall relented, more to shut Rinoa up than anything else. "Mika can go with you. Happy now?"

"No." Rinoa thundered, glaring at him.

"Okay there's been a slight change of plans." Squall said once everyone had returned. "Rinoa is going to accompany Ellone back to Esthar and she's requested Mika as her bodyguard. Are you okay with that Mika?"

"I can live with it." Mika said noncommittally. "Dante, if you say that my tone inspires such confidence I will not be responsible for my actions."

"Leave the brotherly jousting out please." Squall said wearily before taking a deep breath. "I've given this a lot of thought and I'm guessing that this mission is high risk, possibly the most dangerous mission that we've undertaken since the Ultimecia Affair. I need everyone to make sure their affairs and their wills are in order."

"No problem," Dante state bright before pulling out a small notepad and throwing it to, or more accurately at Mika. "You're the executor of my will Mika. So if you fuck this up, so help me, I'll come back and haunt you."

"Looking forward to it." Mika hurled back. "I'm almost tempted to sell all your possessions just to see if you really will come back to haunt me." A beat. "Maybe I should look into contact details for exorcists." He spun around and headed out of the office.

"Exorcists fix demonic possessions not ghosts!" Dante bellowed cheerfully after him. "Jackass."

"So Dante," Squall said. "This bartender you know. Do you think he'll be able to help us find Swift?"

"He won't want to." Dante informed him. "But word is he knows everything there is to know about people like the Obsidian family. I'll talk to him alone though. He's not good with large crowds or the security services so if he sees the exalted Commander Leonhart's mug he'll run a mile."

* * *

Willy, the small swarthy man that ran the bar looked up as Dante entered and was unable to conceal a long suffering look. Then he forced an unconvincing smile and beckoned Dante over to the bar as he continued wiping glasses with a rag that looked as if it hadn't seen a wash in a decade.

Dante wasn't put off by Willy's less than enthusiastic welcome. There wasn't a lot of things that could dissuade him, and a small time bartender with a perpetual ear to the ground was no different.

"Hey it's Dante Skyle," He said trying to sound jovial as Dante approached before lowering his voice. "You're killing me here."

"I missed you to." Dante replied before looking over the bar which was considerably busier since the last time he'd been here. "The joints jumping."

"Yeah," Willy agreed nodding frantically. "I got a deep fat fryer in. These gangsters, they go crazy for chicken wings. Anyway, what can I get you? One the house of course."

"Yeah I'd like a double shot of information." Dante said threateningly. "You see, I'm hoping you'll be able to give me some information on a very specific subject. I might pay a bit."

"Yeah, you see that's the thing." Willy said going pale. "I don't talk behind peoples backs anymore. A few gangsters nearly did me in last year and after that I had an experience of the spiritual variety."

"Really?" Dante raised an eyebrow sceptically to show that he didn't believe a word of it.

"I know you think I'm blowing smoke up it," Willy admitted. "But I've been making some changes with my life. This is Willy's Place now." He jerked his thumb at the neon sign behind him. "I'm getting away from my old image."

"You mean as a double dealing snitch?" Dante enquired lightly.

"Yeah!" Willy said, his complexion bypassing white and heading for grey. "If these guys see me talking to a guy like you then I'm just the same old Willy working both sides of the street and that doesn't bode well for me."

"I'm going to have to punch you." Dante said it almost sadly, as if he'd expected nothing better.

"Just once," Willy said. "And it don't have to hurt just make it look good. Okay go…no wait." He raised his voice. "No I can't talk to you…"

Dante silenced Willy by punching him in the face hard enough to launch him against the back wall. Willy groaned cupping his face before using his rag to dab at the blood spurting from both nostrils.

"I think you broke my nose." He said indignantly.

"It's not broken," Dante observed distastefully. "But it'll sure as hell sting for a few days. Now fess up."

"Well what do you want to know?" Willy asked thickly through the scarlet waterfall.

"Swift Obsidian," Dante said, satisfied to see Willy go even paler. "I'm looking for him and I think you could probably point me in his direction."

"Please don't punch me again but I'm not sure if I can help you." Willy replied imploringly. "Swift doesn't want to be pointed at. I don't know for sure where he is."

"Please don't tell me that." Dante said.

"Look I can only tell you what I know." Willy amended quickly. "I've heard a few things on the underground."

"The underground?" Dante echoed.

"Yeah!" Willy went into a nodding frenzy. "From things that live under the ground. You see a couple of weeks ago this Shumi Tribe guy comes in. According to him, there has been a lot of migration out of Trabia by the lower inhabitants. Something's scaring them off."

"You think it could be Swift?"

"Well there are not a lot of things that can rattle the Shumi Tribe." Willy continued. "They barely noticed the Second Sorceress War but I suppose their only connection to it was a lunatic giant calling himself Norg."

"So the Shumi are scared." Dante mused. "It's not a great deal to go on, and for all we know it could be something else much worse. If the Shumi are pissing themselves with fear…I really don't want to meet whatever's scaring them."

"Well I guess I can point you towards some of Swift's associates." Willy said. "I've heard that one of Swift's heavy lifters is holed up in warehouse seventeen down by Lapin Beach."

A few minutes later Dante met up with Squall and the others in an open air café in the city centre.

"So all we know is that the Shumi Tribe might know something and one of Swifts associates might be working out of a warehouse." Squall muttered. "I thought this guy knew everything."

"I never said Willy knew everything." Dante replied patiently (a landmark achievement for him). "But what little information he's given me in the past has been pretty solid with real ramifications. Have any of you heard of something that seriously scares the Shumi Tribe?"

"Not really." Selphie spoke for the whole group. "My understanding is they're extremely hard to rattle."

"Exactly," Dante said. "Nothing scares them unless it's seriously bad, and my past experiences of Swift have effectively convinced me that he's got the credentials in spades."

"So what do you suggest?" Squall asked.

"We grab this associate of Swifts at this warehouse," Dante answered. "And we squeeze some answers out of him. I'll go in and grab him while you guys just get ready. As soon as we find Swift, things are going to kick off and we'll need to be at the top of our game."

"I'm not sure that you grabbing this guy is a particularly good idea." Squall said, while the others made noises of assent.

"Because I killed our last source of valuable information," Dante chuckled knowingly before slipping on the safety catches on both his AK-47 and MAC10, handing them to Irvine before stripping off his belt kit and dropping it on the ground. "That's why I'm going in unarmed."

"Great comfort that." Squall snorted. "If I remember correctly you killed Foxton with your bare hands."

"Oh yeah I forgot about that." Dane grinned viciously. "It's hard to keep track sometimes. I killed Foxton because he pissed me off, not because I had no choice so I tell you what. I'll exercise some restraint this time around. Promise." He attempted a reassuring smile, but it looked more like a bloodthirsty leer.

"Yippee," Zell muttered to Selphie and Irvine as Dante spun around and headed off towards the beach.

* * *

Laguna didn't know quite what to make of Mika Skyle. The young man was clearly a lot more refined and sophisticated than your average gun toting mercenary, having addressed Laguna with the appropriate amount of respect that his office demanded. Laguna had never been one to jump to conclusions but despite his well earned reputation for ineptness in the past his instincts did tend to be right on the money. Mika was hiding something and for some reason the president couldn't quite fathom he felt compelled to find out what it was.

"So how do you know him?" Laguna asked Ellone while on the train to Esthar, with a meaningful look at Mika who was sleeping in his seat across the aisle.

"I don't know him all that well." Ellone answered sparing the sleeping young man a glance. "We did share an encounter together and I understand that he was a major instigator in the whole "assholes anonymous" thing we did with Squall."

"Don't worry Laguna." Rinoa spoke up from next to Ellone. "Mika's a decent and hardworking individual. That's why I chose him as my bodyguard. You don't have anything to worry about, especially as I chose him and not his sociopath of a brother."

"If you say so," Laguna muttered uncertainly, before deciding to out what he considered the elephant in the room. "You're not like, you know, into him are you?"

"Excuse me?" Rinoa spluttered indignantly. "Where did that come from?"

"It's been my experience that romantic feelings do develop between bodyguards and their principals with alarming frequency." Laguna stated simply. "I'm not sure but I think the main reason I because the principal feels obligated to repay the bodyguard in a way."

"I'm not some giddy schoolgirl with a crush!" Rinoa snapped. "I trust Mika but that's all. Squall is indisposed and Mika is one of very few people I think can protect me from Swift Obsidian."

"That's fair enough," Laguna continued, unwilling to back down. "But can you look me in the eye and tell me that you're not into him, in any way shape or form? I wasn't there for Squall during the first seventeen years of his life, my fault I know, so he's my priority. He's family and if Mika even thinks of taking you away from Squall I will end him on the spot, no questions asked."

"Don't be so melodramatic sir." Mika spoke up, his eyes closed. "I'm going to protect Rinoa and that's all. Besides, if I thought you were going to "end me" any time soon we'd be having an extremely different conversation."

"Satisfied?" Rinoa asked Laguna fiercely. "Squall and I may be going through a bit of a rough patch but hey, it happens. He's still my boyfriend and that's highly unlikely to change anytime. I'd upgrade it to nigh impossible if it makes you feel any better."

"If you're worried about me interfering with your security don't be sir." Mika interjected, his eyes still closed. "I wouldn't dream of interfering unless your security poses a threat to my principal, in this case Rinoa. I also feel a great swell of pity for the poor soul who turns up in the Presidential Palace looking for trouble."

When they got to the Presidential Palace a few hours later Mika didn't do a great deal to alleviate Laguna's doubts. First, during the fifty yard walk from Laguna's armoured limousine to the entrance to the Presidential Palace he loaded and cocked his rifle, a move that certainly didn't endear him to the palace security. Then he requested the most Spartan room on the same floor as Rinoa's. This still landed him with a four poster king-size bed, power shower and mini bar. The look on his face could've melted a steel bar.

"It is the simplest room we've got here." Laguna explained over Rinoa and Ellone, who were howling in laughter at Mika's expression.

"It'll do me suppose." Mika said, dumping his rucksack and rifle on the bed. "Thanks again for agreeing to put me up. I'm very grateful."

Rinoa opened the door to her room and her mouth fell open. The room she'd been given was four times the size of she and Squall's room at Garden. Both the bed and bath cum shower were of an adequate size for an entire football squad and the large windows offered excellent views over the entire metropolis and a good portion of the surrounding country. Rinoa could just make out the lonely spire of the Sorceress Monument in the distance.

"Oh Rinoa I'm so sorry!" Laguna exclaimed, correctly guessing at what she was looking at. "I can get you another room."

"There's no need." Rinoa replied drawing the curtains. "I remember what happened there, and I don't think ignoring it will do anyone any favours. My name is Rinoa Heartilly and I am a Sorceress who can turn people I don't like inside out with a look."

"Well it's good you're so open about it." Laguna said.

At that precise moment a C-130 Hercules transport plane touched down at an abandoned airstrip a few miles outside the city. The rear ramp lowered allowing a van with blacked out windows to drive out and make its way into the city. It stopped briefly at a junction before turning towards the Presidential Residence.

* * *

Dante stepped up to the front entrance of warehouse seventeen and was not surprised in the slightest that the sliding door was securely locked. He headed round to a smaller door in the back and tried the handle. It was locked but the handle was so rusted Dante guessed it wouldn't open even if he had the key. He gripped the handle and strained. There was a metallic crunching as the lock shattered and Dante entered. It was almost pitch black inside due to the filth clinging to the windows but Dante had always been pretty good at seeing in the dark. He sniffed the air and grimaced.

"People still live like this." He muttered to himself. "What the bloody hell is the world coming to?"

That was when the silence was rent with three gun shots. Dante screamed in agony as he hit the ground where he writhed in pretty considerable pain. Whoever had shot him had clearly intended the wound him as he'd taken all three bullets in the lower legs and feet. He pulled himself into a sitting position and found himself staring down the business end of a .45 revolver. Attached to the gun was a hand. Attached to the hand was a body and attached to the body was a face and a shockingly familiar one at that. Dante sighed in annoyance and rolled his eyes heavenwards.

"Oh bollocks."

"Watch your mouth." Major Marcus Foxton said before pumping a shot into Dante's thigh from close range. "I don't tolerate profanity and I certainly don't tolerate people snapping my neck."

"Squall already gave me enough grief for that." Dante growled. "I don't suppose you'd care to tell me how you managed to walk away?"

"Sorry trade secret." Foxton said, circling Dante and keeping his gun on him. "If you're very good I might tell you before I kill you so there's an incentive to behave."

"Why are you doing this?" Dante growled as he wrenched the bullet from his thigh and tossed it aside. "Haven't Swift and his psycho brother done enough to me?"

"This has nothing to do with Swift Obsidian." Foxton told him. "He doesn't even know that you're here or even if I'm here. This is my own vendetta. I'm not limited to doing only what Swift tells me. I do have the enterprise to work on my own agenda."

"Your own agenda?" Dante echoed uncomprehendingly. "Pardon my ignorance but what would that be?"

"You killed me." Foxton snarled, aiming his gun between Dante's eyes. "It's only fair that I return the favour."

"Well get on with it then." Dante said angrily.

"Not quite yet." Foxton said evenly. "I think I'll let you bleed some more while you mull over what I'm about to tell you. If you think for one moment Swift isn't a dozen steps ahead of you, you've got another thing coming. He knows what you'll do. He always knows. You're wasting your time if you think you'll find out what he's up to before he wants you to know. Allow me to ask, what do you think you'll do when you find him?"

"Rip his head off or possibly shove something pointy through his heart," Dante shrugged. "Something poetic. What's it to you?"

"There's the difference between you and I." Foxton laughed. "Have you ever considered Swift might be something other than evil? Next to him, even next to me you're miniscule. You're tiny. I am something you'll never be. I believe in evil and because of that I am pure. You, you're impure."

"Yeah damn right I'm impure." Dante retorted. "I'm impure as the driven yellow snow." Foxton laughed and Dante eyed him uneasily. It was fairly obvious to him that Foxton was insane and dangerous. Killing him, this time permanently was a priority. Before Dante could act things took a decidedly worse turn. A door opened on the opposite wall and a figure walked in. Foxton fired two shots but the figure simply shrugged them off. Before Foxton could reload Dante threw himself into him. Before he could end Foxton in a typically violent manner he was seized in an iron hard grip and thrown aside. Foxton was lifted by the throat by the figure who stared into his eyes.

"Naughty, naughty." The figure said in a voice that chilled Dante to the bone and then some. "No one tortures Dante Skyle but me."

There was a tearing sound, a sickening crunch and Foxton's body dropped to the ground. His head, with at least half the spinal column still attached followed a second later. The figure turned towards Dante. He was a slimly built man and he looked as if he was in his early to mid thirties. Despite his slight build he looked strong and he had light brown hair cut short and extremely dark blue eyes. His chin and jaw bore a light growth of stubble and he was smiling as if at some private joke. Dante immediately started to crawl away from him.

"Don't worry Dante," The man said calmly, holding his hands out in a gesture of supplication. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"You've got a nerve tracking me down." Dante juddered. "Haven't you done enough to me?"

"Maybe," The man said brightly before casting a look at Foxton's carcass. "But I just saved your skin in case you didn't notice so maybe a little bit of gratitude would be in order hmm?"

"Do you seriously think for one minute you deserve it?" Dante growled trying to sound tough, although there was a very audible tremble in his voice that gave him away.

"Ouch!" The man commented. "I suppose I tunnelled right into that one. Come on Dante. We should get out of here before Major Foxton comes to."

"Comes to?" Dante echoed as the man pulled him to his feet before acting as a human crutch.

"Right, you don't know do you?" The man sighed before starting to explain. "I'll explain. Major Foxton has a rather interesting ability that I can't say I've ever come across in my time. It appears that he is shielded against death by supernatural means or creatures, so neither you nor I can kill him. It's rather pesky. Trust my brother to use someone like him. It's bloody typical."

"Alright that's enough!" Dante growled, pushing the man away. "What do you want Alexander?"

"First things first, you answer my questions." The man…Alexander…returned. "Do you think you'll be able to get off your high horse long enough to do that Scourge?"

* * *

**Author Commentary: There he is. Alexander Obsidian makes his first appearance. This chapter is what is known as my "stuff happens" chapter as I've given you a goldmine of information. The next chapter should be comparatively light on the Dante and Co storyline as I'll begin seriously building on Mika's upcoming hero moment and his friendship with Rinoa. Trust me, the dude is bad ass. For those who are interested in seeing Swift again you won't have to wait too long for him to show up, but a confrontation between him and his little brother Alexander is a good while off yet. As for Dante, his character is going to get a lot darker in upcoming chapters while Squall's character is going to grow steadily closer to the light side of the force. His troubles are not over just yet, not by a long chalk. My next chapter is going to be based off one of the classic 1980's action thrillers. See if you can guess which one. I'm giving you forewarning so no one accuses me of stealing an idea. I'm well aware how familiar it is but I'll put my own spin on it, you can be sure of that. To my reviewers Dee and Bebedora, you guys keep me going and I hope to hear from more readers soon please (puppy dog eyes). Please let me know what you think. I would kill for a review but I don't think they'd let me use a laptop in the nick so updates could be affected. Until next time I'll see you. **

**~Ally Todd**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve: High Time**

Alexander booted the door into the condemned building open and helped Dante up the stairs, mainly because the lift was broken. The junkies and delinquents they passed didn't bat an eyelid as if two young men, one suffering four serious bullet wounds were an everyday occurrence. They reached a black door that was held closed by a thick chain and an industrial looking padlock. Alexander half-carried half-dragged Dante inside and dumped him on a decrepit sofa.

"Nice digs." Dante growled.

"Cut the comedy," Alexander advised him. "Now take your jeans off and if you feel faint, let me know."

"If this is some twisted attempt to jump me you can forget it." Dante snarled. "I am not taking any of my clothes off in your presence. Final."

"You were shot repeatedly in the legs." Alexander replied matter-of-factly. "I need to look at the wounds and get the bullets out. Maybe they'll even go septic. We can but hope. Now please take your jeans off Dante. Believe me I don't want to go poking around there any more than you want me to."

Dante reluctantly unbuckled his belt and pulled off his blood stained jeans. Alexander handed him a chunk of rubber to bite down on before he unscrewed the top of a bottle of vodka. He poured it over Dante's' wounds in order to sterilize them before using a pen knife to remove the bullets. Dante had removed one from his thigh and another had gone straight through his leg, between the fibula and tibia. Alexander quickly located the remaining bullets and removed them skilfully before examining one of them.

".45 calibre, nine millimetre." He grimaced before throwing the bullet aside with a growl of distaste. "You're lucky Foxton wanted you to suffer, and luckier still that these didn't rip your legs off." He handed the vodka bottle to Dante. "Here, drink this."

"Thanks," Dante said uncertainly as Alexander crossed to a set of drawers and withdrew a pair of identical jeans. Dante pulled them on and then took a mouthful of vodka. Then he decided to see if he could stand up. His legs shook violently but they seemed to support his weight. Alexander sat next to Dante on the sofa and took the vodka. He swallowed a mouthful before handing it back to Dante,

"How did you survive?" Alexander asked him directly after a particularly pregnant silence.

"I think I've got your brother to thank for that." Dante said. "After what he did to me, I was a lot better equipped to handle that place. Lucky me huh?"

"Swift," Alexander heaved a world weary sigh. "That guy is one hell of a buzz kill. He's quite wily though. He's the only member of my family I never managed to track down since we became estranged. Okay next question. How did you manage to escape from that place? It's completely unprecedented."

"I made the Sluks show me a way." Dante answered. "It took them a while but they managed it and I rewarded them appropriately."

"Meaning?" Alexander enquired offhandedly before he successfully read the look on Dante's face. "You killed them quickly. At least you haven't gone soft. That said however, have you forgotten what I taught you? Never go for the kill, when you can go for the pain."

"It kills me to say this," Dante muttered. "But I'd rather follow what Swift taught me then what you did." Before he could react Alexander grabbed him by the throat and pinned him to the sofa.

"Next time you feel like getting a smart mouth, remember that I just saved your life." He hissed his jaw tight with anger. "You haven't changed a bit Dante. You're still wallowing under the delusional that you're actually relevant on this plane of reality. How far do I have to go to disabuse you of that notion?"

"I'm sorry…" Dante managed to grit out as his complexion deepened and his eyes bulged. "I didn't mean…to offend you."

"I certainly hope not," Alexander said as he released Dante who coughed laboriously and spluttered. "Because I'd hate to have to hurt you. Next question. I've heard that you're looking for Swift. Why?"

"I'm being sub-contracted by Balamb Garden." Dante answered. "Apparently Swift has been looking for something, or someone they might have." Dante knew that lying to Alexander would be detrimental to his genuine wellbeing, but he had no such reservations about leaving some things out.

"Balamb Garden?" Alexander mused. Dante could practically see Alexander working it out with disquieting speed. "A Sorceress. Swift thinks that Balamb Garden has a Sorceress. They were involved with the Second Sorceress War and they were present when Adel Harbinger was dead. Why would Swift think that they have a Sorceress?"

Dante's mouth fell open but Alexander was luckily too lost in thought to notice that Dante was gaping at him as if witnessing the end of the universe. Alexander had always given off the aura of being all knowing but unless Dante was very much mistaken Alexander had committed the fairly large oversight of failing to realise that in order to rest peacefully a Sorceress had to past her powers on to a successor. Alexander jerked out of his reverie.

"Right then," He said. "I suggest you return to your friends from Balamb Garden and do you utmost to find out the real reason Swift is harassing them."

"Do you think it's possible that they have a Sorceress?" Dante asked. "Isn't it worth investigating?"

"No need." Alexander grunted. "It's not possible. Edea Kramer gave up her powers and Adel Harbinger is dead. They were the only Sorceresses' in existence. I know that for the fact. Head back to your friends. Do not mention what happened tonight. I can't have people knowing I'm back on the grid yet."

Dante shook his head as he walked down the street towards the hotel that they were staying in. He chuckled. Alexander showing up was probably the worst thing that could've happened but it was still pretty interesting. Best of all, Alexander hadn't done his homework on Sorceresses' as well as he thought he had, and that allowed Dante to get the jump on him. As he walked down the street one word thundered through his mind like a crack of ungodly thunder.

_Revenge!_

It would definitely be sweet, not too mention long overdue. A smile warped Dante's lips as he pictured Alexander and Swift on the ground. Alexander's chest was ripped open and a knife was sticking out of Swifts neck. By the time he reached the hotel he was laughing like a hyena as he pictured particularly gruesome ways to end the men who had ruined his life, each one gorier than the next.

* * *

The day following Rinoa, Ellone and Mika's arrival at the Presidential Palace was significant as Laguna was entertaining a large number of dignitaries, including Rinoa's estranged father Fury Caraway, President of Galbadia. Laguna had decided that a party in the Presidential Palace's unreasonably sized ballroom was in order. Rinoa had initially refused point blank to attend until Laguna had told her that she, Ellone and Mika could go out shopping for formal wear with absolutely no price limit. Rinoa may detest spending any length of time within fifty miles of her father but she was still a girl. Mika however was not as easily swayed.

Rinoa was waiting outside Mika's room, dressed in a strapless, eggplant mermaid dress with a lace up back. Her hair was drawn back into an elegant bun and she was wearing no jewellery aside from the diamond earrings Squall had given her for their two year anniversary and her necklace, complete with both Squall's ring and her mother's wedding ring hanging from it. She looked beautiful and the effect was not diminished in the slightest when she sighed in exasperation and rolled her eyes when Mika stubbornly refused to emerge from his room.

"Are you going to come out anytime soon?" Rinoa demanded, injecting an ominous edge into her voice.

"You've got to promise not to laugh at me." Mika replied obstinately, still not showing himself.

"I promise I won't laugh at you." Rinoa said exasperatedly.

"It's got to come from the heart." Mika said sounding a lot like he was sulking. Rinoa snorted. A guy sulking about having to dress up in formal wear? That was a first. Selphie had once told Rinoa that Irvine spent up to an hour getting his hair absolutely right in the mornings and Mika was doing Rinoa's belief that guys cared more about their appearances then girls did no harm.

"Will you stop being such a baby?" A thoroughly annoyed Rinoa exclaimed. "I said that I promise."

Mika stepped into view dressed in a stylish black and white tuxedo, complete with cummerbund and bow tie. His usually unruly hair was immaculately groomed. Rinoa's eyes widened. Mika wasn't exactly the bog monster at the best of times but Rinoa could only think of one or two other guys who came close to being as handsome at the man before her. Before Rinoa could stop herself she snorted with laughter.

"This is what your promises are worth?" Mika demanded mournfully. "I'm having a lot of trust issues at this point in my life."

"Sorry," Rinoa apologised after she'd gotten a hold of herself. "It's just, you look so pretty."

"Pot, kettle, black." Mika hurled back before smiling self-consciously. "You know, there are not a lot of people who could call me pretty and live; but the way you look, there's no way I can fight you."

"Shall we?" Rinoa said before taking Mika's arm and allowing him to guide her down the hallway to the elevators.

"So this gig tonight?" Mika enquired as they rode the elevator down to the ballroom. "Is it a gathering, a shindig or a hootenanny?"

"I don't know." Rinoa said uncomprehendingly. "What's the difference?"

"Well the way Dante tells it," Mika proceeded to explain. "A gathering means Brie and mellow song choices. "Fix You" by Coldplay is a must. A shindig means a large amount of malted beverages and less mellow song choices, maybe "All the Small Things" by Blink 182. As for a hootenanny, chock full of hoot and a little bit of nanny."

"And what song choice did your brother advise for a hootenanny?" Rinoa enquired brightly, wondering where Dante got his questionable definitions for social functions.

"It could only be one thing." Mika grinned roguishly. "The ultimate hootenanny anthem according to my sociopathic nutcase of a brother is "Tubthumping" by Chumbwumba." The lift dinged and they stepped into a crowded room, where a string quartet was playing some baroque music. Mika let out an odd little moan.

"Mika?" Rinoa shot him a part questioning, part amused look. "Are you okay?"

"I've figured it out." Mika said decisively. "Formal wear and a string quartet. I'm in hell. This is hell and I'm in it."

Before Mika could feed the string quartet their instruments or do something equally unpleasant they were accosted by Ellone who was dressed in a dress that was an eye watering shade of aquamarine. She cast an amused look at Mika.

"Finally came out of hiding I see." She observed, giving him an appreciative once over. "You look very dashing."

"Put your eyes back in Ellone," Rinoa quipped, laughing. "He's only here as my bodyguard."

"Maybe that was his original mission statement." Ellone teased gently. "I'm sure I can provide him with another equally appealing task." She placed an alarming amount of stress on the last three words before blowing Mika a kiss and heading off.

"You may well be out of luck." Mika called as Ellone somehow dragged the monolithic shape of Presidential Aide Number One, Ward Zabac out of his chair for a dance. "Is she like that with all guys?"

"She's just teasing." Rinoa assured him. "Anyway, look at her. If she was for real are you telling me you wouldn't be tempted? I know you've got a whole rigid mental control thing going on and you seem to be borderline OCD when it comes to protecting me but you are a guy. Would you actually go for a girl like Ellone?"

"We'll never know." Mika said before noticing Rinoa's face fall faster than a rocket car driving into a sinkhole. He wheeled around and immediately understood Rinoa's abrupt mood swing. Striding towards them was a tall, well built man with a soldier's posture and immaculately groomed grey hair. Mika wasn't known for keeping up with current affairs but he knew the man was Rinoa's estranged father, Fury Caraway, President of Galbadia.

"Rinoa," Caraway said as he reached them inkling his head formally to Rinoa. Mika could've sworn the temperature dropped a few degrees.

"Mr President," Rinoa replied icily, doing a respectful curtsey, a gesture at complete odds with her tone and expression.

"Rinoa," Caraway sighed in annoyance. "I really wish you wouldn't call me that. Would dad or father be too much to ask?"

"The only relevance you have to me is you are my President." Rinoa hurled back at him frostily. "I truly wish this wasn't the case but I was born in Galbadia."

"I remember." Caraway growled, his general mind set kicking in. "I was the guy holding your mothers hand and that if nothing else should at least make you afford me a modicum of respect."

"In your dreams." Rinoa bit off. "If you're waiting for respect you'll be waiting a while. Don't hold your breath. Or go right ahead, either way I'm good. However I am feeling particularly benevolent tonight so if you move on I'll cut you a sliver of slack."

"I'm going nowhere," Caraway said looking around for reason behind the statement and found it hovering protectively by Rinoa's side. "Until you introduce me to your latest conquest."

"Mika is not a conquest." Rinoa snarled before Mika interjected.

"I am not a conquest Mr President." He said coldly, though outwardly he was still adequately respectful. "Rinoa's boyfriend Squall Leonhart commissioned me, Mika Skyle to protect Rinoa from harm for the duration of her stay in Esthar. Now I cannot go into specifics about what exactly I'm supposed to protect Rinoa from but it could include overbearing wannabe father figures."

"Excuse me…" Caraway began, incensed but Mika cut him off.

"No I don't." Mika growled, stepping forwards and staring deep into Caraways eyes. "I may be wrong but it looks like Rinoa doesn't want to talk to you. I'm protecting her and if you continue to obstruct that I may have to remove the obstruction, in this case you if necessary by sending you off to the land of Nod." His tone was cheerful but the challenge in the words was perfectly clear.

"You don't talk to me like that." Caraway glowered. "I'm the President of Galbadia for heavens sake!"

"I don't care if you're the grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan." Mika replied. "I'm a citizen of Dollet so you have no authority over me. If you're thinking about getting some of your cronies to drag me into a back room and rough me up to teach me some manners I'd advise against it. If you feel compelled to do it anyway I'd advise you start looking for new henchmen. It shouldn't be too hard to find some unless they ask what happened to the last ones."

"I suggest you watch your mouth." Caraway said, his face slowly turning red as if his head was slowly filling with boiling water.

"Yeah that'll work." Mika hurled back assertively. He was enjoying himself and wasn't even bothering to hide it. "Now say pretty please."

"You just marked yourself." Caraway growled. He simply held Mika's gaze before storming off, muttering under his breath. Mika chuckled before turning to Rinoa with a confident smile firmly in place, as if picking a fight with one of the most powerful men on the planet was his idea of a perfect way to get his kicks.

"So," He enquired of Rinoa lightly. "That was the first meeting with the parents. How do you think it went?"

"Could've been better." Rinoa replied, recognising the joke and gladly playing along with it. "That said however, I think Pops will have to get used to the fact that you're here to stay."

"Lucky me." Mika grinned before nodding behind Rinoa. "What do I spy with my little eye? A free bar. Do you want a drink?"

"God yes." Rinoa said.

Caraway meanwhile was watching Rinoa and Mika from the other side of the room with narrowed eyes. He turned to one of his aides.

"Get onto Intelligence." He ordered curtly. "Get them to run the name Mika Skyle through the filters. If that doesn't work get them to hack into Dollet, Esthar and Garden databases. Get me dirt on this guy. He's hiding something and I would dearly like to know what."

"It'll be done Mr President."

* * *

The night wound on with the partygoers showing no sign on letting up when the string quartet were replaced with a DJ who started up with "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol. After a depressing start he kicked it into high gear with Bon Jovi's "You Give Love a Bad Name".

"I'm going to answer the call of nature." Mika said to Rinoa. "Don't go anywhere. Stay here okay?"

"You're totally determined to protect me aren't you?" Rinoa said with an amused glance at him. "It's not going to get pesky is it?"

"I hope not but if it does just remember your safety is paramount." Mika grinned self-assuredly at her. "I've done a bit of close protection and body guarding before now. The guy who trained me was a savage clod calling himself Dante Skyle but he did a bang up job. Rule number one of body guarding. The principal can't be shot if you're standing in front of them."

"What about exit wounds?" Rinoa pointed out. "Especially at close range a bullet could got straight through you and hit me. That said I don't want you getting hurt to protect me."

"I was shot twice in the back with high calibre bullets by a murdering psychopath." Mika reminded her. "I'm still here, which means I qualify for the hard bastard of the year award. I can look after myself. More importantly, I can look after you." He flashed her a quick smile before heading for the bathroom. In ironies little joke, as soon as Mika entered the bathroom the lift opened, and several men armed with MP5 submachine guns stepped out.

Mika was about to wash his hands when the firing and panicked screaming began. Mika spun around and swore loudly.

"Oh for fucks sake!" He growled quietly lest he be overheard. "I leave her alone for one minute and look what happens." He reached inside his jacket and gave the hand grip of his USP .45 sidearm a reassuring squeeze. It wouldn't be much use against automatic weapons with a fire rate of between seven and nine hundred rounds a minute. That meant Mika was going to have to improvise, but first he had to find out how things stood.

He inched the bathroom door and his eyes confirmed what he'd already guessed. The intruders were firing their weapons in the air and herding the partygoers into a tight huddle in the middle of the floor where they were forced to sit on their hands. Their mobile phones were placed on the bar and then smashed with the butt of a weapon.

"Check the bathrooms!" A man with a very faint Estharian accent yelled and one gun man headed into the female bathroom. Another came at the male one. Mika acted quickly. He took a quick run up and jumping onto a toilet threw him self headfirst into the ceiling, knocking a section loose. Mika hauled himself into the crawlspace and pulled the section back into place as the man entered, weapon at the ready. Mika pulled out his gun and slowly and silently slid the safety catch off just in case. Mika listened closely and after a handful of slow-ticking seconds he heard the man leave the bathroom and return to the ballroom. Mika however stayed where he was and forced himself to calm down and think. It didn't take Mika long to figure out what to do.

First priority was to let people know what was happening and the second was to gain some heavier firepower. His mobile and rifle were both in his room but for all he knew the entire building could be infested with gun toting lunatics. He needed to get to a part of the building that then gun men probably wouldn't head to. The site of the damage from Swift's rocket attack on the Presidential Palace sprung to mind so Mika immediately started crawling in the direction of one of the staircases in the corner of the building. He readied his gun and then removed another section of roof panelling. He poked his head through to see a long corridor. At the far end was one of the gun men with his back to him. At the nearer end was a door marked as stairwell. Mika dropped through the hole and keeping his gun on the man he backed towards the stairs.

As soon as Mika was in the stairwell he hared up them, abandoning stealth in the name of speed. He made it up to the eighty sixth floor which was one below the site of the rocket attack. He looked around for inspiration and found it on a nearby wall. By Esthar law, every building was fitted with a state of the art fire alarm system. Every time an alarm was tripped, it was immediately relayed to thee Fire Department and they knew to send out a fire crew. The system was far from fool proof especially in a city with a population perilously close to three hundred million people. Mika shrugged. Desperate times frequently called for desperate measures. Mika punched the fire alarm. Then he sat down behind a shelving unit and waited.

As he guessed, the gun men would've been able to establish the origin of the alarm and he was proved right as a brown haired, bespectacled man carrying a black rucksack and a gun stepped out of the lift and scanned the vast room. He started to move slowly towards a pair or large containers, obviously under the impression Mika was hiding behind them.

"The fire has been called off my friend." He called out. "If you come out with your hands I promise I won't hurt you." He must have realised he sounded unconvincing so he called out again. "Come out unless you fancy being turned into a human colander!"

Mika had removed his socks and shoes so his footsteps wouldn't be heard. Before the gun man knew what was happening the barrel of a pistol was pressed against the back of his head.

"Drop your weapon." Mika ordered before cocking his gun ominously. "Drop it and kick it away."

"Who are you?" The gun man asked without dropping his weapon.

"I'm the bodyguard of one of your hostages." Mika replied. "That's all you need to know. That and the fact that I just became your worst nightmare."

"You won't shoot me." The gun man said confidently. "You're a good guy, a white hat. It's not their style to kill someone they have at their mercy."

"Then you clearly don't know me very well." Mika growled. "I would dearly love to pull this trigger. However, I have questions and you will answer them fully and honestly clear?"

"I'm not going to tell you anything." The gun man replied before swinging his gun around and up knocking Mika's gun flying. Before he could fire Mika kicked his gun from his hands.

"I was so hoping you'd say that." Mika laughed before grabbing the man and throwing him bodily into another shelving unit that broke under his weight. "Come on out of there and have another go mate." The man quickly disentangled himself and pulled out a large hunting knife. "Or you could do that."

Mika backed up and avoided a swing with the knife and popped the man on the chin with a nasty punch before kicking him in the ribs. The man aimed a thrust at Mika's throat but Mika danced out of range before planting one foot against the nearest wall before pushing off and using the other foot to deliver an enormously powerful aerial spin kick to the man's head. He was thrown off his feet and he crashed to the ground. It only took one look at his badly twisted head to tell something was badly wrong. Mika checked the man's pulse only to discover there wasn't one. Mika shrugged. He started rooting through the dead man's rucksack, finding a CB radio, magazines for his MP5 and most intriguingly of all four sticks of plastic explosive and detonators. Mika grabbed the MP5 and jammed his pistol through his cummerbund. He allowed his finger to curl around the trigger and smiled grimly. One way or another, this would be a very interesting night indeed.

* * *

**Author Commentary: Yes this chapter and the next are heavily based off _Die Hard _as if you couldn't tell. The next chapter will reveal massive earth-shattering revelations about both Mika and Dante. If I was being overly pretentious I'd deepne my voice and say; "Everything you though you knew about the brothers Skyle is about to change". Mika's dislike of formal wear is actually based off a friend of mine who detested formal wear so much he turned up at my sixth year ball (prom to you Americans out there) in nothing more than a bow tie and boxer briefs. Needless to say he didn't stay long. The exchange on the subject between him and Rinoa was stolen from a very similar scene in my other fic, between Quistis and Seifer. That was in turn stolen from the Angel episode "Waiting in the Wings". This chapter was a nightmare to write despite the fact I love writing bad ass Mika and I don't think the next one will be a day at the spa either. This is one idea I've had in my head for ages (ever since I watched _Die Hard _actually) and you'll fin out what our machine gun toting friends want. Here's a hint. They are not interested in Rinoa but they've done their homework. The next chapter is probably going to be non-stop action and it's a chapter I've been legitimately dreading. If you can give me any encouragement I'd appreciate it immensely. As always thanks and hugs go out to my reviewers Dee and Bebedora. You guys rock so much so thank you. I hope to hear from you in the near future.**

**~Ally Todd**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen: The Random Factor**

Mika made it to his room without incident and when he left he was completely tooled up and armed to the teeth, preparing to launch a one man war against the hostage takers. Before throwing a monkey wrench or ten into the works he figured someone outside the Presidential Palace should know exactly what was going on. If things went against Mika there was one person he knew who would protect Rinoa successfully. Mika punched a number into his mobile phone and waited. The person on the other end picked up in the middle of the third ring and judging by his tone he wasn't very happy.

"Marcus Foxton is still alive," Dante raged. "And when I find him I am going to destroy him limb by limb."

"What happened?" Mika asked, wondering if things could get any worse. "Are you okay?"

"No I bloody well am not okay!" Dante exclaimed. "I was ambushed, I was shot and now I'm vengeful." Maybe what Alexander had told him about Foxton being shielded from death at supernatural hands was true, but Dante was confident he could find a loophole.

"Forget Foxton," Mika ordered his brother. "We have a pretty major problem. An unknown number of terrorists have shown up and taken a great deal hostages, among them the Presidents of both Galbadia and Esthar, as well as Rinoa."

"What?" Dante groaned. "Hang on a minute. I'm putting Squall on. I don't think he'd believe me if I was to tell him."

"Hello?" Squall's voice said after a few seconds.

"Mika Skyle here." Mika chirped. "You might want to sit down. I've got a problem and it revolves around the fact that Estharian security is not the best in the world. An unknown number of terrorists armed with automatic weapons and plastic explosives are currently holding several dozen hostages, including Laguna, Ellone, President Caraway and Rinoa hostage. I'm all ready to secure their release but I though you should know."

"Mika listen to me very carefully." Squall said. "Do not do anything to anger the hostage takers. That might provoke them into executing various hostages. Stay where you are and do not give yourself up. We'll be there as soon as possible and we might need your help."

"Sorry no can do." Mika replied brightly. "You see I've already killed one of them and I'm prepared to off some more. If they don't know that he's dead already they will soon, so I advise you to haul ass here. Use that big old airship of yours. I forget what they call it."

"The Ragnarok." Squall said. "Mika are you completely insane? You're outnumbered and outgunned. We don't know how many of these guys there are and there's one of you. You're dead meat and you know it."

"Tell me Squall are you familiar with guerrilla warfare?" Mika answered, sounding almost deliriously happy. "I don't remember ever using it in a high rise building so this should be very interesting. Multiple terrorists, high rise building, reluctant hero; there should be a movie."

"Mika wait a second…" Squall began but Mika had already hung up and in Squall's opinion was proceeding to pour petrol on the fire. "Idiot."

"He hung up on you huh?" Dante observed smiling like a loon over steeped fingers. "He's got to stop doing that."

"Selphie," Squall said ignoring Dante completely. "How quickly can we get to Esthar?"

"If we use the Ragnarok and violate Esthar airspace rules more than a hooker in the sex offenders wing of the desert prison, I'd say maybe four hours." Selphie said contemplatively. "Three and a half if I really push it. What's going on?"

"Terrorists have seized the Presidential Palace and taken dozens of hostages." Squall answered addressing the whole room. "That includes Rinoa, Ellone as well as President Loire and President Caraway as well as Loire's entire staff and a good portion of Caraway's entourage."

Across the room Irvine swore softly.

"Quistis, I want you to call the Estharian Police and Military and let them know what's happening." Squall started issuing orders. "Irvine, I want you to call the Galbadian Authorities and have them mobilise the Dragon Squadron. Zell, call Trabia Garden and have them ship their best counter-terrorism team down to Esthar. Any questions?" No one spoke. "There is one other thing. Somehow, don't ask me how the terrorists missed Mika when they took the hostages. He's our eyes and ears and he claims he's already popped off one of them."

"I wouldn't say he was claiming anything." Dante interrupted. "If Mika says he's killed one then he has, poor bastard. Mika doesn't lie about stuff like that and once he makes himself known those terrorists won't know what's hit them. I suggest you cancel the armed assault and let Mika do his thing."

* * *

The leader of the terrorists was a man of totally unremarkable stature calling himself the Doctor. He spoke with a mild Esthar accent and had brown hair and eyes. After dispatching one of his men to check out a fire alarm that had mysteriously tripped on the eighty sixth floor he'd grabbed Laguna and dragged him into a side room. The terrorists had obviously done their homework very well indeed as Rinoa had been cuffed with Odine brand restraints. It quickly became obvious these people did not like Laguna very much.

"Let me tell you a little bedtime story." The Doctor said, idly twirling a surgical scalpel between his fingers. "Twenty one years ago, the regime of Sorceress Adel came to a rather abrupt end. This had the result of turning Esthar from a feared dictatorship to a second rate so called superpower. Before Adel was deposed Esthar could stand alongside Galbadia but now there is no one to stop Galbadia getting stronger and stronger. Adel was killed four years ago. You deposed and imprisoned her and you also had a hand in killing her." He raised two fingers as if to frame what he was saying. "That was a mistake."

"You might think that," Laguna said through swollen lips. "But it felt pretty good to me."

"Dictatorships are useful." The Doctor continued. "They keep people in line, remind them of their place and they stop anyone, for example Galbadia becoming too powerful. Admittedly people who become dictators aren't always the best choices due to some being a little bit crazy, like Adel. Her beloved building sized doomsday weapon, also known as the Lunatic Pandora wasn't the best thing she could've built but why dwell?"

"I thought you were going to kill me," Laguna quipped. "But I didn't think you were going to bore me to death."

"A smart mouth can land someone like you in a boatload of trouble." The Doctor said striding forwards and slugging Laguna in the stomach. "You have done a great deal of damage in the last two decades as President but luckily the money we're demanding for your safe return from your son will go some way towards fixing that."

"You know Squall will never pay you." Laguna laughed, determined to show the Doctor that he wasn't threatened. "Sooner or later he'll kick the door in and chop you into croutons and I sincerely hope I'm there to see it."

"You'll forgive me if I don't believe you." The Doctor replied pleasantly. "Anyway why don't we get started? There are five main torture groups. You've already sustained blunt but we've still got to try sharp, hot, cold and loud. Do you have any particular preference?"

"Not really." Laguna announced sounding distinctly bored. "Why don't you surprise me?"

"No, no, no!" The Doctor jeered. "This is always a lot more fun with audience participation. May I take your order please?"

"Look whoever you are," Laguna set his jaw. "If you wouldn't mind taking your head and boiling it don't let me stop you."

"What bit of my warning about a smart mouth landing you in a lot of trouble did you have trouble understanding?" The Doctor enquired. "When I roughed you up earlier I thought you might have grasped the fact it's a bad idea to play games with me."

"Why not?" Laguna enquired disinterestedly. "You're going to torture me to death anyway."

"You're not wrong about that." The Doctor grinned sadistically. "Aren't you worried about that in the slightest?"

"It's odd." Laguna said philosophically. "People that fear death I mean. It's coming and there's exactly sod all I can do about it, so why fear something that's going to happen. Anyway I can go giggling to my grave knowing that if you kill me Squall will hunt you down and carve you into fish bait while you're still breathing."

"I doubt that." The Doctor said casually. "It's my understanding that you and your illustrious son are far from close. I suppose neglecting him for seventeen years does that to a kid."

"I didn't know he existed." Laguna shot back, suddenly possessed by a powerful need to defend himself. "Maybe I'm not his favourite person in the world but I doubt he'll be pleased when he finds my body chained to rocks with my genitals nowhere near the rest of me."

"Now let's continue with the pain shall we?" The Doctor proclaimed, "Let's give sharp a try. If you're a screamer, feel free."

"AAAAARGH!" Laguna said.

"Sir!" One of the terrorists yelled over Laguna's screams. "Max hasn't returned from dealing with the fire alarm yet."

"The idiot probably got lost." The Doctor sighed. "Okay, Karl. Take Joey and Neil up to the eighty sixth floor and find him."

In the roof space directly above the Doctor, Mika listened intently. He guessed Max was the man he'd killed. Add Karl, Joey and Neil then you had four terrorists. The man who was obviously the leader made five and Mika highly doubted the terrorists would leave the hostages unguarded so there were six or more terrorists. Mika used a cigarette lighter for light and wrote the names he had on the palm of his hand before putting a line through Max's. Mika could've gone through the roof then and there, killing the Doctor before he even knew he'd been attacked, but he had no idea how things stood in the room and he wasn't prepared to announce his presence yet.

"What's going on?" Ellone asked Rinoa as three gun toting men headed for the lift.

"Something's wrong." Rinoa murmured, noticing the men's edgy looks. "They didn't anticipate something and I've got a pretty good idea what, or more accurately who."

"Mika?" Ellone whispered incredulously. "What the hell does he think he's doing? He's going to get us killed. I know he's not the type to shut up and smile when held hostage, but now that he's on his own you think he'd consider us before messing up the works."

* * *

Mika had meanwhile made it to the site of the rocket attack. Several floors were joined together by scaffolding and there were exposed beams and electrical wires. Mika briefly contemplated blowing up the electrics with some of the explosives he'd taken from Max but he had no idea what the result would be and he also had no idea how stable the whole area was.

There was a bing from below him, meaning that the three terrorists had rode the lift up. Mika briefly contemplated somehow forcing the doors closed and then cutting the lift cables but he had a better idea. He'd dragged Max's body up with him originally to hide it. Now he grabbed it and waited a few seconds before tossing it off his perch.

Neil was nearest when the body came crashing down through the ceiling tiles. Max's head was twisted badly and his features were locked in a painfully surprised expression. His right hand was clenched in a fist, aside from the middle finger that was standing offensively upright. Written on Max's chest in what Neil fervently hoped was red ink was a single phrase; Fuck you.

As one all three terrorist raised their weapons and started firing through the roof. Mika however was well ahead of them as he'd tossed Max's body through the roof then sprinted to the other side of the storey. He unslung his M16 and fitted an ACOG scope before waiting patiently. He figured the terrorists might come up after him. He was quickly proved right. As the smallest, Joey was boosted by Karl and Neil and he climbed into the mass of scaffolding. He turned around and saw Mika crouched maybe thirty metres away. He raised his weapon and opened his mouth to shout but Mika simply shot him straight through the middle of the head. Joey was blasted clean off the beam he was standing on and he fell through the roof, narrowly missing Neil and Karl. Mika moved quickly and climbed a ladder up to the next level. Neil and Karl didn't seem inclined to follow him so Mika decided to see if they were hotheads.

"Hey ass holes!" He called. "Come and get me. I'm just dying for some target practice. Step right up, thrashings for all."

"Report to the Doctor." Karl ordered Neil. "I will deal with this little shit."

Mika heard Neil heading for the lift so he rushed across the scaffolding and barged open a metal door, finding himself in the lift shaft. He took careful aim and dropped six metres onto the top of the lift landing catlike. The lift started to descend rapidly and Mika knew he had very little time. He wrenched open the hatch in the roof of the lift and leant in. He grabbed Neil around the neck and bopped his head off the lift wall. As the man collapsed dazed, Mika jumped in and pressed the button for emergency stop. He quickly disarmed Neil and hauled him into a sitting position.

"Now where do we start?" Mika said as he pulled out the hunting knife he'd taken from Max. "How many of you are there?"

"Go to hell!" Neil growled viciously before spitting at Mika.

"Oh don't say that." Mika said conversationally as he wiped his forehead. "You and I are going to be very good friends because unless you want to die screaming bloody murder you'll cooperate. Now how many of you are there?"

"T…Twelve." Neil juddered as fear made itself known. "There's twelve of us, counting Max and Joey."

"Who's running this little show?" Mika demanded. "You're in pretty deep shit but I do value honesty. Tell me the truth and I might even refrain from killing you. I'm a nice guy."

"The boss calls himself the Doctor." Neil said after composing himself. "I don't know anything else about him. I don't think anyone knows who he is apart from his second in command Karl."

"Okay and how do I get in contact with the Doctor?" Mika produced a CB radio and forced Neil at gunpoint to key in the frequency. Mika raised the radio to his lips.

"Hello, is that the Doctor?" He asked. "This is the monkey wrench in the works calling for the Doctor, over?"

"Who is this?" The Doctors voice answered, sounding surprised and a little disconcerted. "What do you want?"

"I wouldn't expect Max and Joey to show up ever." Mika replied. "I would hate to continue killing your henchmen so if you pack up and leave I'll stop. I'll even refrain from killing Neil here." He crouched next to Neil and pulled out his pistol before putting the radio next to Neil's mouth. "Say hello Neil."

"He's in the lift…" Neil yelled before being cut off as Mika shot him between the eyes. He wiped his face clean of the blood splatter with Neil's bandana before picking up the radio.

"Dearie me," Mika sighed regretfully. "Correct me if I'm wrong but that makes three down, nine to go. Leave now and I'll stop killing your men. Refuse to leave and I will destroy this little party of yours piece by piece."

"What the hell are you?" The Doctor demanded. "Are you some sort of over-zealous security guard?"

"Sorry wrong guess." Mika jeered. "I am no security guard. I will tell you this; I have a very particular set of skills, skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you leave now I will not look for you, and I will not pursue you. If you do not leave, I will look for you, I will find you and I will kill you."

"Well then," The Doctor laughed. "Do you honestly think you have a chance against us?"

"Yippy-ky-yay motherfucker." Mika quipped before pressing the lift button for floor number eighty six. He reloaded his weapons and filled his rucksack with anything useful he could find in Neil's, mainly more C4 and ammunition.

It was time to kill Karl.

* * *

The Ragnarok landed in front of the Presidential Palace and Squall led his team out before striding towards a senior looking policeman, shouldering his way through the crowd. He looked to Dante.

"Try Mika again." He said before tapping the police officer on the shoulder. "I'm Squall Leonhart, Commander of Balamb Garden. Where do we stand? Have we talked to the terrorists yet?"

"Not a peep." The officer replied. Squall looked around. Estharian police didn't carry guns and he noticed a disquieting lack of firearms.

"So where are the counter terrorism teams?" Squall demanded. "Please don't tell me you're thinking of talking them down. There are armed and fanatical terrorists in there. The situation requires a violent situation."

"Squall!" Dante clicked his fingers and motioned Squall over. "I've gotten a hold of Mika."

"Put it on speaker." Squall ordered.

"The terrorists are currently torturing President Loire," Mika's voice said. "Judging by what the leader was saying they're loyal to old Esthar and the late Sorceress Adel. As far as I can tell, no one else has been hurt but I don't think it'll last. If I kill another one of them who knows what'll happen."

"Excuse me but who the hell do you think you are?" The police officer demanded indignantly. "More to the point, what do you think you're doing?"

"He's my brother Mika," Dante answered. "He's doing what needs to be done and he's the primary reason you're facing nine terrorists as opposed to twelve. Don't try and talk him down. It can't be done."

"Give me that!" The officer snarled snatching the phone. "Listen up wiseass. I don't know who you are but I suggest you find a hiding spot and stay there. We've got these terrorists trapped in there. They have nowhere to go. We've got everything under control."

"Oh really?" Mika snorted. "The only stuff you know is what I've told you, so you'll forgive me but it doesn't look like you're in control of jack shit."

"Okay what happens if the terrorists decide to kill a hostage in retaliation for your little crusade?" The officer challenged him.

"My sole interest in this incident is one hostage in particular." Mika replied. "I said I'd protect her and I will do just that. If they decide to kill a hostage, well the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. I'm also inclined to bet they won't kill my hostage. For one thing there are maybe nigh on one hundred hostages there. She is also, forgive me Squall, pretty attractive and these terrorists are male humans so they have certain needs that the hostage in question is equipped to satisfy. If I'm wrong, then I'm wrong but I'm not."

"Keep on going Mika," Squall said. "I can see someone sitting at the reception desk and I'm prepared to bet he's another terrorist. Do you know where others might be?"

"I'm currently going after one on the eighty sixth floor." Mika replied. "I'm guessing that the rest are in and around the ballroom."

* * *

Karl stood precariously on a computer chair poked his head through the hole that Max's body had created, his gun at the ready. The first thing he saw was a the tip boot, the second was the barrel of an M16 rifle hovering inches from his head.

"Hi there!" Mika smiled before drawing back a boot and letting Karl have it full in the face. Karl toppled backwards and landed hard enough to shake the entire eighty sixth floor. Mika jumped through the hole but Karl had recovered quicker than Mika had anticipated and he kicked out, knocking Mika's gun away before punching him in the face. Mika fell over backwards as Karl advanced.

"Not as fun when we hit back is it?" Karl laughed sadistically as he kicked Mika in the ribs.

Mika pulled off his rucksack and tossed it aside before adopting a combat stance. He dodged Karl's next punch and retaliated with a roundhouse kick to the kidneys. Karl roared in pain and charged into Mika knocking him over. They hit the ground and Karl straddled Mika before punching him repeatedly in the face. Mika spat a mixture of saliva and blood upwards and got Karl in the left eye. As Karl swore and clawed at his face Mika slammed the heel of his hand upwards into Karl's jaw, knocking him off and snapping his head back. He leapt to his feet and grabbed Karl by the waistband and scruff of the neck, heaved him headfirst through a glass partition. Karl grabbed a pair of scissors and came at Mika. Mika blocked a thrust aimed at his throat with his arm, but sustained a deep cut across his elbow. He dropped to the floor and rolled away before launching himself at Karl, butting him in the stomach. Karl stumbled backwards and tripped over Max's carcass.

"Now that was just clumsy." Mika observed before planting a boot on Karl's chest and laying into the terrorist with both fists, concentrating his efforts on Karl's face. Karl concentrated on wrenching Mika's foot off him. He started twisting the ankle savagely. Mika's upper leg buckled but as he fell he lashed out with his free foot and more by luck than design caught Karl in the face. Karl relinquished his grip and Mika caught him by the ears and nutted him in the face. He repeated the move before Karl lashed out with one fist like a boxer, getting Mika in the chest. Mika retaliated with a roundhouse kick to Karl's temple, dazing him before smashing him twice in the face. Then he seized Karl's left ankle and wrenched his leg upright before stomping in his knee and pulling his lower leg in the other direction. There was sickening crack and Karl screamed bloody murder.

"Fuck! My leg!" He exclaimed. "Look what you did to my fucking leg! It's backwards!"

Mika however wasn't renowned for showing people who'd tried to kill him mercy so he retrieved his rifle and shot the window out before sending Karl on a short, eighty six storey, and fatal journey to the pavement outside the Presidential Palace.

* * *

"God I hope that's not a hostage." Squall said as the body hit the pavement with a wet crunch.

* * *

Squall had told Mika that there was another terrorist at the reception desk so Mika opted to head there next. He loaded his rifle and hit the button in the elevator for the ground floor.

There were actually two men in the ground floor. One was sitting at the front desk smoking and periodically directing a sequence of very rude hand signals at the police through the bulletproof glass. The other was round the corner patrolling the hall in front of the elevators. He'd heard what had been happening upstairs on his radio so he raised his weapon and flipped off the safety as one of the lift doors opened and Mika stepped out, murder in his eyes. The man squeezed his trigger and Mika dived back into the lift for cover, but not before he'd launched a stiletto that hit the man directly between the eyes.

The man at the desk dropped his cigarette and leapt out of his chair at the sounds of the gun shots. He rounded the corner but was unprepared for Mika to barrel in and rugby tackle him. Both men hit the floor but the terrorist was able to kick Mika's gun out of his hands and pull out a knife. Mika kicked him off and they both got to their feet before facing each other, the guard flipping his knife while Mika faced him off with his bare hands. It was hardly an even contest and Mika immediately showed why. As the terrorist lunged forward Mika grabbed his wrist and snapped it with one quick twist before breaking the man's nose with a quick punch and then kicking him in the ribs. Then he dragged forwards by the broken wrist, smashed his elbow into the man's jaw and then floored him by sweeping his legs away. The fight was finished as Mika smashed a fist into the man's throat, crushing his larynx and wind pipe in full view of the police, army and SeeD forces.

"I taught him how to do that." Dante said in an undertone to Quistis as he preened outrageously.

"That's one seriously fun hobby you've got there." One police officer said with a nauseated look as Mika retrieved his rifle and honoured both dead men with three round bursts in the head, just to make sure. A few seconds later Dante's phone buzzed. He checked it to receive a text from Mika.

**Six down, six to go.**

Mika was heading up the stairs when the radio at his waist beeped, signalling an incoming transmission. Mika tensed. Hopefully he might be able to gain even more invaluable intelligence by listening in on their transmissions. No such luck.

"Hello Mr Mystery Guest," The Doctors voice said, dripping with sinister menace and badly concealed loathing. "Are you there?"

"Yeah I'm here." Mika said as he continued scaling the stairs rifle first, alert for any danger.

"What's the plan then?" The Doctor enquired loftily. "Are you just going to kill us all?"

"Yep that's the plan." Mika grinned. "It shouldn't be too hard after I've waxed Max, Joey, Neil and Karl in that order as well as the two clowns on the ground floor. I'm going to work through all your men and then I'm going to come for you, reach down your throat and tear out you vocal cords so you can't scream when I get out the pins and needles."

* * *

**Author Commentary: I'm very sorry about how long this chapter took to get put but in my defence I'm fairly sure I'm dying of bubonic plague complete with headaches, throat like sand paper, migraines, dizzy spells and sudden loss of appetite. I guess it says something about my borderline obsessive commitment to this fic but enough about me, let's talk about this chapter. There are any number of _Die Hard _references but given the premise of this chapter that's unsurprising. There's also a reference to the Liam Neeson thriller _Taken_ that's very, very easy to find. If you're tired of me stealing most of Die Hard outright then fear not. In the next chapter the terrorists will have no idea what hit them, but they're not going to be the only people shocked by certain developments believe me. This chapter was looking to be a lot longer than all the others so I had to cut it down a bit, hence the rather abrupt change. The next chapter is going to be an absolute bomb, revealing one main plot device and I'm sure you'll all be glad to know the return of Swift (I can justify telling you that by saying that his appearance is not that important to the overall plot). Things are going to kick off big style and you'll see that Mika and Dante are not the angels everyone seems to think they are. Okay, reflex. You'll see Mika is not the angel everyone seems to think he is. Dante is, politely put, a dickhead but he's not all bad. As ever thanks and hugs go out to my reviewers Bebedora and Dee, without whom this fic would not exist. I love you guys beyond words and please keep 'em coming. **

**~Ally (dying of bubonic plague) Todd. **


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen: Revelations in Blood**

Squall was kneading his forehead and contemplating various courses of actions when he became aware of a commotion behind him. Various Esthar police had pulled out extendable batons and pepper spray and were waving them threateningly, yelling things about "no civilians or journalists allowed". Squall eyes narrowed. Very few people he knew could get this close anyway. He stood up to get a better view and his worst fears confirmed. Walking towards them slowly and purposefully was none other than Swift Obsidian himself. He was smiling confidently and the smile betrayed him as a man who was perfectly in control. Squall seized his gun blade and pointed it at Swift.

"Don't come any closer!" He yelled ferociously as the other SeeD members grabbed their own weapons.

"Good to see you again Commander." Swift said conversationally as he stopped (surprisingly enough) a few metres away. "What have you gotten yourself into now?"

"You're not going to find out unless you fancy receiving a complimentary dismemberment first." Squall carped.

"Well it's tempting," Swift replied sarcastically. "But no thanks. I think I'll just wander into the Presidential Palace and find out just exactly what is going on for myself? What say you?"

"Aren't you supposed to be all knowing or something?" Selphie enquired.

"I'm just a guy, not God." Swift replied pleasantly. "Granted, I've got a few extraordinary skills but that aside, to business. I sense you're not going to let me into the Presidential Palace. Fortunately you can't stop me even if you tried."

"I beg to differ." Squall raised his gun blade while Irvine raised his shotgun and Dante clicked the safety catch off his AK-47. Zell however had a different sort of hindrance in mind. In typical Zell Dincht fashion he charged towards Swift with an inarticulate roar of pure adrenaline. Swift waited until the brawler was right down his throat before his leg snapped out and caught Zell in the chest. He flew backwards until he impacted solidly with the side of and Esthar police van, leaving a large dent. For a martial artist of Zell's stature it was a humiliating takedown. Swift ducked under Squall's gun blade before jumping a car with ease, rolling under the police cordon and before anyone could stop him he was sprinting towards the Presidential Palace.

"I've wanted to do this for a long time." Dante sighted on Swift's receding back and emptied his entire magazine into him in three or four round bursts. If he was hoping he could stop Swift he was in for a disappointment as Swift shrugged the bullets off with no effort whatsoever.

"I can understand the sentiment behind shooting him in the back," Selphie observed dryly. "It's just a pity that's he's clearly got some bad ass body armour."

"That's the thing." Dante picked up one of the ejected empty cartridges. "I was using these. Armour piercing, high velocity rounds. They'd ordinarily blow a guy in half but not Swift apparently."

"I hope you've got a theory or two about how he survived." Squall ventured as he sheathed his gun blade.

"A couple," Dante nodded before grinning darkly. "You guessed it. I'm not inclined to share them with you at this moment in time."

"Right that's it!" Squall roared his temper breaking as he pinned Dante against the landing gear of the Ragnarok. "You're holding out on us and I am sick of it to the back fucking teeth so unless you want me to gut you like a sea bass tell me what you know. Come on Mister Know It All Skyle, spit it out!"

"Or what?" Dante countered smiling that infuriating smile of his. "You'll do me for insubordination?"

"There's no point." Squall snarled. "As you've frequently pointed out you're an outside contractor so I've got no jurisdiction over you. I'll have to find another method of dealing with you." With a flicker of movement Squall's gun blade was across Dante's throat. "One last chance. Fess up."

"So I guess locking you up in the detention block didn't remove your inner imbecile." Dante observed idly. "It just supressed it. Now I'm giving you one last chance. Remove your gun blade or I promise you, I'll send you back to Garden in six or seven pieces."

"Stand down, Squall." Irvine concurred despite the fact he had no authority over the Commander. "We're all on the same side. We should be thinking about how to save Ellone, Rinoa and all the other hostages instead of fighting one another."

Squall reluctantly sheathed his gun blade and turned away from Dante before spinning around and punching Dante square in the face. Dante laughed as he put out a hand to steady himself.

"Okay fair one," He conceded with a nod. "I deserved that."

"You deserve a great deal more than that," Squall exclaimed, pointing a warning finger at Dante whose smile dropped like a stone. "And once this is over I'm going to deeply enjoy applying appropriate punishment."

"Don't take it personally." Quistis muttered to Dante who looked as if he was set to lunge forward and rip Squall a few new holes. "He just gets that way sometimes."

"You seem to spend a lot of time apologising for him." Dante grunted.

* * *

Inside the Presidential Residence Mika had decided that it was high time he let the Doctor and his cohorts know that he was going nowhere and he wasn't going to stop until every single one of them was in a body bag. First he rode a lift up to the fiftieth floor, and then he took the stairs up to the fifty first. He'd looted Joey and Neil's bodies to discover that they had plastic explosive also. Then he used his rifle to wedge open the lift doors and made a ponderous jump to the lift. He opened the hatch in the roof and after setting a timer on a detonator for twenty seconds he tossed the explosives into the lift, closed the hatch and leapt back out of the lift shaft. Neil was about to have one of the most spectacular funeral pyres ever. Mika pulled out his pistol and shot the lift cables, sending it plummeting into the abyss. Mika grabbed his rifle allowing the lift doors to close. For a handful of slow ticking seconds there was dead silence.

The Doctor was about to take a power drill to Laguna's knee caps when there was thunderous boom that shook the Presidential Palace to its very rivets. Everyone in the building was thrown off their feet and for the two men guarding the hostages it was to be the last experience of their lives as a door to a stairwell opened and Swift Obsidian emerged. He leapt forward like lightning and punched them in the chests, his hands disappearing inside their torsos. They gurgled and Swift ripped his hands free, taking each man's heart with them. They collapsed.

Mika meanwhile was giggling and for once exhibiting exactly why he and Dante were related.

"Now that was fun." The radio at his belt beeped and he snatched it up. "Wow, what a bang huh?"

"What the hell did you just do?" The Doctor exclaimed. "You just destroyed a whole building!"

"I doubt it." Mika grinned. "By my calculations I'll have wrecked the lift shafts and the five lowest floors but I guess structural damage will be pretty light. You know, figuratively speaking. The building won't collapse. Monkey wrench out." It was at that point Mika's phone rung.

"Mika get the hell out of there right now!" Dante yelled down the line. "Swift is in the building somewhere and if he sees you odds are he'll kill you on the spot."

"Swift's in the building?" Mika echoed horror struck, various potential disasters flipping through his mind. If Swift got to the hostages before Mika did…Mika immediately snatched up his rifle and kicked the door to the stairwell open. As luck would have it one of the Doctors henchmen had been sneaking up and the door had impacted solidly with his head and sent him plummeting down the staircase. Mika checked his pulse. It was weak but Mika stopped it altogether with two shots from his pistol. He eventually reached the ballroom and crouched just out of sight. Two more terrorists were on the floor and they both sported gaping holes in their chests. Swift himself was sitting on a chair with his back to Mika. As far as Mika could tell Swift hadn't noticed Rinoa yet and she was slowly moving to put the colossal figure of Ward between her and Swift.

"Mika, drop your weapons and come out please." Swift called idly. "Don't make me come and get you."

Mika reluctantly dropped his weapon before shedding his rucksack. He knew Swift well enough to know that if he refused to follow his instructions he might end up losing his heart as well. He stood up showing himself. Swift turned to look at him.

"Mika Skyle!" He exclaimed with every appearance of delight. "How really corking to see you! Come and sit down. Oh and Miss Heartilly if you move one more inch I'm afraid I'll have to fracture your spine."

"Leave her out of this Swift." Mika said as he approached. "I'll stand if it's all the same to you."

"Sit down." Swift repeated, a hardness creeping into his voice. "I won't ask a third time."

"Okay," Mika took a chair facing Swift and attempted an air of respect. "I'm here. Now what?"

"We wait for whoever the fellow in that room torturing Laguna Loire to set out here and then we're going to make nice." Swift explained before picking up one of the dropped machineguns and firing a long burst in the air, nearly bringing the plaster down. There was a brief pause and the Doctor and yet another henchman exited their makeshift torture chamber.

"Before you even ask," Swift began. "I'm not the guy who's been messing up the works all night. I just got here and I've only killed two of your men, the morons on the floor with their hearts missing. The dubious honour of the dangerous random factor of the year award goes to the young fellow sitting across from me."

"Who are you?" Like lightning a pistol was in the Doctors hand and it was pointed directly at Swift's heart.

"Swift Obsidian is what they call me." Swift replied evenly. "And I just became your worst nightmare."

With a bestial, animalistic roar Swift shot across the room like a bullet. Within a fraction of a second he was right in front of the Doctor. He grabbed the unfortunate man by the throat and bore him aloft. The henchman swung his machine gun towards Swift but he never got as far as pulling the trigger as Mika barrelled in and shoulder blocked the unfortunate terrorist before grabbing his head and twisting it left and right. His neck snapped and Mika callously shoved the body aside.

The Doctor was gagging as Swift tightened his hold on his throat but Swift was barely paying him any attention at all. Instead he was speaking to Rinoa.

"You need not worry Rinoa," He said conversationally. "I'm not after you for the time being. All I need is for you to stay put and stop getting yourself into these sorts of situations. This article however…" He shook the Doctor for emphasis before tossing him to the floor and then with one frighteningly violent movie he tore the Doctors head clean off and tossed it aside. The body slumped over a fountain of blood exploding out of the neck. Everyone screamed the place down blue bloody murder and even Mika averted his eyes and in doing this exposed his face to Rinoa's view. Her eyes widened in horror as her brain processed what her eyes were telling her. Something bad had happened to his face. It had changed and certainly not for the better.

Mika's quietly handsome features were gone and Rinoa could scarcely believe what had replaced him. His features were now obscenely hollowed and chiselled with an exceptionally pronounced brow line. His eyes were sunken and deep set and they glowed with a dull yellow light, His lips were drawn back, revealing his teeth all of which had lengthened and sharpened. The most prominent however were by far his canines that had elongated to twice the length of the others. Rinoa knew then, exactly what she was looking at.

"Anyone's who's not having fun here," Swift said as he wiped his hands clean. "Follow me."

Before Swift could lead or anyone could follow Rinoa leapt to her feet and sprinted from the ballroom as fast as her feet could carry her. Mika looked as if he was suffering from a painful internal struggle as his face reverted to his human guise. He looked to Swift who nodded.

"Go on then." He waved a hand dismissively.

Mika hared off after Rinoa, and apparently she wasn't the only one who had noticed his change. Most of the hostages backed away from him. The exception was Caraway whose fatherly instincts had obviously kicked in. He stepped out in front of Mika and attempted to stop him. Mika simply turned his body so his shoulder slammed into Caraway and threw him off his feet. Mika eventually caught Rinoa in the main foyer on the ground floor which had taken one hell of a battering from Mika tossing a time bomb down a lift shaft. The walls, ceiling and floor were all badly cracked and smoke blackened. Mika caught Rinoa by the arm.

"Rinoa wait a second," He said, spinning her around to face him. "I need to explain this to you."

"What are you?" Rinoa demanded forcefully, glaring at him. Mika didn't reply straight away so Rinoa tried again. "What are you?"

"You already know." Mika replied evenly, his voice quite steady as he held Rinoa's gaze his green ones locked on her chocolate brown ones.

"No I don't." Rinoa contradicted him, breathing hard. "It can't be. It's just not possible."

"If you knew what I know you'd realise just how possible this is." Mika answered in a slow calming voice so he didn't spook her.

"Answer me Mika." Rinoa ordered, more insistently this time. "What are you?"

"Everything you think you know is about to change." Mika warned her. "Are you absolutely sure that you're ready for that?"

"Answer me!" Rinoa practically shouted.

"I'm a vampire." Mika said simply. "Rinoa I need to explain this to you. There are other factors and I know it doesn't change what I am, but it might help you understand. I know this looks bad…"

"Oh you think?" Rinoa shrieked. "Bad doesn't cover this. I trusted you Mika! You were supposed to protect me at all costs and all this time…"

"I've been doing exactly that." Mika cut her off. "I know this is a lot to take but I have to ask you…"

"This is too much!" Rinoa sprinted out of the Presidential Palace and towards Squall before throwing herself into his arms. "Get me out of here! Take me back to the Garden!"

"Are you okay Rinoa?" Quistis asked stepping forwards in concern as she clocked Rinoa's distressed manner.

"Just take me back to Garden," Rinoa sobbed into a thoroughly bewildered Squall's arms. "And keep Mika away from me!"

"Wait a second…did he do something to you?" Squall asked. Before Rinoa could reply there was a commotion as a man stumbled out of the Presidential Palace before steadying himself and pointing a machine gun at Mika from close range. Dante was the first to react. He sprinted forwards, cleared a car and the police cordon in a single bound and closed the final terrorist down with shocking speed. The man saw him coming and switched his aim but Dante was already on top of him. Dante let out a fearsome roar and forced the man's gun to fire in the air as he tore into his victim's neck with his teeth. The man screamed bloody murder but Dante paid him no mind and as the man struggles weakened he removed his mouth from the man's neck and with one single movement snapped it like a twig.

"Looks like the game's up brother." Dante said to Mika who shrugged and allowed his demonic visage to come to the fore as they walked towards the bewildered SeeD members. "Yes, Mika and I are vampires." He allowed himself a small smile. "Did we not mention that?"

* * *

Rinoa walked into she and Squalls' room and immediately poured herself a generous measure of whisky. She swallowed half of it in a single mouthful and was about to take another drink when she felt a prickling on the back of her neck. She spun around and found Mika standing by the open window looking at her.

"Rinoa," He said it quietly so he didn't panic her, keeping his eyes on her. "Please don't be afraid of me."

Rinoa reacted instinctively, throwing the whisky at Mika's eyes before spinning around and wrenching her door open. Mika however ducked the whisky and forced Rinoa's door closed with a single hand before spinning Rinoa around to look at him.

"Rinoa I would never hurt you." He said calmly. "Never. When I said I'd protect you I meant it. I can't possibly imagine what you're feeling right now…"

"Damn right you can't!" Rinoa barked. "You need to leave me alone right now or I promise you, I'll make you leave."

"Not until I explain myself." Mika said firmly. "Just give me a chance to explain myself and then you can decide whether you still want to be friends with me. If so, brilliant. If not, then fine, no hard feelings. I'll head out that door and you can lock it with anything you like."

"Speak quickly." Rinoa said as she poured herself another whisky and gulped it down enthusiastically.

"Once you stop drinking I'll talk." Mika said. "You're already wound up enough and you don't need booze making it worse okay?"

"No not okay." Rinoa retorted angrily. "Where do you get off telling me how to drink? Slaughtered any innocent people for their plasma recently?"

"I haven't drunk human blood for a long time." Mika answered. "I know this is a shock to you but I am begging you, you cannot tell anyone that doesn't already know. I need you to promise that."

"How can you ask me that?" Rinoa cried.

"Because you knowing this is dangerous." Mika clarified. "For so many reasons. When you've been around for as long as I have you make enemies, and my enemies are people I don't want coming after me or people I care about."

"How long?" Rinoa whispered.

"Pardon?" Mika replied nonplussed.

"How long have you been a…?" Rinoa composed herself. "How long have you been one of them?"

"A vampire?" Mika grunted. "Not long by vampire standards. I've been twenty one years old for nearly eighty years. There are vampires out there that are ten times that age but they're relatively hard to come by. Vampires are always testing themselves. They hunt monsters on almost religious levels and as you can imagine not every vampire is equipped to deal with a mature Ruby Dragon or a Behemoth. If there are no monsters around vampires will turn on each other. We live to fight. It's in our blood and the strength coupled with natural aggression usually results in vampires getting hurt, or even killed."

"How strong are you?" Rinoa asked in spite of herself.

"The older a vampire the stronger they are." Mika shrugged. "I'm stronger than any bodybuilder and faster than a sprinter but there are other vampires who are so far beyond that it's not even funny."

That was when the door opened and Squall strode in before stopping dead as he saw Mika. A whisper of movement and Squall had his gun blade out and pointed at Mika who seemed unperturbed. Rinoa backed off slightly. She had a funny feeling that Mika was about to demonstrate how strong he was and she didn't fancy being caught in the crossfire.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Squall demanded angrily as he tumbled the hammer on his gun blade.

"Shooting the breeze." Mika replied evenly. "Getting a few things out on the open. If I were you I'd put that weapon down. Believe me Commander; you don't want to pick a fight with a super strong creature of the night who, I think it's fair to say could knock you into the middle of next week without tensing a muscle."

"Squall I don't think he's here to hurt anyone." Rinoa said but what Mika said next didn't help matters much.

"Might hurt you." Mika said stepping forward and eyeballing the Commander who surprisingly enough held his gaze.

"Oh please try." Squall carped as both men; SeeD Commander and vampire postured, eyeing each other carefully.

"Some threat." Mika observed noticing the dark rings around Squall's eyes and the yawn he was stifling. "You can barely stand."

"Trigger finger feels okay." Squall returned, tightening his grip on the hilt of his gun blade. Mika however was as usual totally unperturbed so he decided to up the ante a little. He turned to Rinoa.

"You actually sleep with this guy?" He sneered.

That did it. Squall tossed his gun blade aside and punched Mika square in the middle of the face. With hindsight this probably wasn't the cleverest thing he could've done. Mika retaliated by kneeing Squall in the guts before grabbing him by the throat and slamming him against the wall. Mika's face shifted to its demonic visage as he rammed Squall against the wall a second time.

"You really do have a death wish don't you?" He snarled baring his teeth. "Vampire here remember? I haven't drunk human blood for years but I've learned it pays to be flexible in life."

"Your brother fed me the same line though he left out the bit about not drinking human blood." Squall choked out. "He's in a cell in the detention block because I really don't like it when people threaten me."

"Oh I get it." Mika laughed as he released Squall but bounced him back against the wall for emphasis. "You're just stupid. Let me ask you something. Do you think for one minute you could've gotten Dante into a cell if he didn't want to go?"

"You'd be surprised how persuasive we can be." Squall growled. "As of now, you two are history here. It's only because you helped us a little over the last couple of months that we haven't arranged a couple of painful accidents for you."

* * *

**Author Commentary: It's not exactly original but everyone is cashing in (figuratively in this case) on the bloodsucker genre so I thought I should add my loose change. Besides, I researched all the various vampire stories I could think of before starting this fic. I didn't mind reading Dracula, and watching _Buffy, Angel _and _The Vampire Diaries_. I also had to sit through five box sets of the mindless porn fest they call _True Blood _and the less said about the god awful abomination that is the _Twilight _saga the better methinks. If you accuse me of being obsessive compulsive, you're right. This chapter is a bit on the short side I accept but it's what I like to call a bridge chapter. We're at the halfway point and things will begin to seriously kick off with major character changes in Squall, Selphie and Rinoa. The appearance of Seifer Almasy himself is on the horizon as well as lots of looming mayhem and we should see more of Alexander, Swift and Foxton. If you enjoy the brotherly jousting between Mika and Dante you'll see much more of that. More of Dante and Mika's backstories will come out in upcoming chapters, including who exactly turned them into vampires if you haven't guessed already. It's not like it's any big secret. I will say this though; Dante's hatred of Alexander has near enough nothing to do with the vampire part of him. It goes a lot deeper than that and it also goes to a much darker place, if possible. It's eating away at Dante and has turned the guy into a ticking time bomb. You'll know all about it when he blows. As ever, many thanks go out to my reviewers (all two of them) Dee and Bebedora. Thanks to all the readers and I would appreciate a review from you guys as well, even if it's to threaten me with various unpleasant things for daring to fuck with the sacred Squall/Rinoa relationship. See you soon my brethren.**

**~Ally Todd**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen: Divided We Fall**

**Two Months Later**

Mika and Dante joint owned a relatively large house on the outskirts of Dollet and they returned there when they'd been forcibly ejected from Balamb Garden. Dante hadn't taken the impressive implosion of he and Quistis' relationship or the aforementioned ejection well and had left several security guards nursing injuries ranging from a bloody nose to three broken ribs. After that initial reaction though he'd gotten over it with surprising speed and threatened to pin Squall down and defecate on his head if he ever saw him again as a parting shot.

The stereo was blaring "You and I" by Black Mustang as Mika worked up a sweat on the chin up bar. If he knew his brother, and it was one of his burdens in life that he did Dante was working on some form of revenge aimed at Swift, Alexander and Foxton should he show up. He'd probably succeed in dragging Mika into it ergo Mika felt a need to stay in peak physical condition. He wasn't unfit at the best of times but in the last two months he'd been going running and monster hunting every day and spending every available moment pumping iron.

"Can turn it up a little bit?" Dante yelled sarcastically over the music as he wandered in with a glass of whisky in one hand and a book in another. "It's not annoying yet."

"Sorry," Mika grunted sounding far from it. "I like to work out to a beat. What's the problem anyway? I thought you liked Black Mustang."

"I've got no problem with the music itself." Dante replied as he seized the remote and paused the music. "It's just a bit loud and I can't hear myself think." He waved the book for emphasis.

"Okay I'll bite." Mika said as he let go of the chin up bar and mopped his forehead with a towel. "What's in the book?"

"Atrocities." Dante replied happily. "I've got the full story on Swift and Alexander's favourite tricks in this book o' mine. When you've been around as long as those two you're bound to leave behind some sort of trail am I right?"

"Almost certainly not but to be fair I tend to tune out when you go off on your crazy kamikaze revenge mission." Mika growled. "If I were you I'd leave them alone. You're just going to get yourself killed."

"Yeah?" Dante spoke politely, although there was a somewhat ominous edge in his voice now. "Well if you were me, then I'd be you and I'd help your big bro stop Swift and Alexander doing what they did to us to some other poor bugger. No one deserves that."

"Not even your new mortal enemy?" Mika asked lightly.

"Okay reflex." Dante said with a slightly twisted grin. "No one deserves that apart from Squall."

"And why are we supposed to attack those guys and dive headfirst into a certain death again?" Mika enquired offhandedly.

"They ruined my life." Dante said with an ugly look on his face. "You might've been able to adapt to vampirism but I found it a little harder. Even if I could do it as easily as you did I'd still have to deal with the complimentary goody bag of complimentary mental torture that Alexander gave me. That sort of stuff doesn't just go away and when this time is right I'm going to do the exact same to him and then some."

"We picked a fight with them and we're still, for all intents and purposes, alive." Mika pointed out objectively. "Can't we just be satisfied with that?"

"We did not pick a fight with them." Dante retorted. "I did, and you were simply collateral damage. I picked a fight with them so what I say on the subject goes, got it?"

"But of course Mein Fuhrer." Mika muttered as Dante strode into his study and slammed the door. Mika shrugged. Maybe baiting Dante wasn't the best idea. After all, Dante wasn't exactly restrained at the best of times. Mika would never admit it to his brother but they were actually quite similar to Swift and Alexander, except that in their case the more restrained and level headed brother was the older.

"Okay this could be bad." Dante said as he emerged from his study a couple of hours later waving the book. Before Mika could take a look both brothers whirled around at the crash of breaking glass in the kitchen. Mika exchanged a wary look with Dante.

"What the hell was that?" He asked.

"I don't know." Dante growled ominously as he moved towards the kitchen. "Whatever beastie you are, I know you're there and I hurt beasties. Show yourself." He moved into the kitchen properly and looked around. He could see nothing out of place aside from the fragments of a broken wine glass on the floor.

"Anything?" Mika called.

"A ghost is it?" Dante demanded of the empty room. "Well go and haunt someone else, there's a good spook." He was unprepared for what happened next. With an animalistic growl a female vampire with long blond hair dropped from the ceiling and threw Dante back into the living room where Mika was facing off another vampire, a well-built male with dark hair and a full beard. The female vampire stepped into the room as Dante clambered to his feet.

Mika's opponent charged forwards but Mika clotheslined him, knocking him to the floor before kicking him in the ribs. The vampire rolled back to his feet and slugged Mika hard in the midriff before knocking him backwards with a nasty front jab to the jaw. Winded but not brought down Mika grabbed his adversaries and violently twisted his arm, trying to flip him to the floor. The vampire however twisted his body and landed on his feet before nailing Mika with a high kick to the temple. Mika hit the ground and rolled aside a fraction of a second before the vampire came down feet first on the spot where Mika had lain. Mika forced himself back to his feet ready to continue the fight.

The female vampire launched a wide kick at Dante who skipped nimbly out of range before blocking a right cross and retaliating with an uppercut. The vampire fell over backwards but she turned the fall into a backwards roll and sprang back to her feet. Dante moved forwards intending to press his advantage but she kicked him in the ribs before grabbing him by the lapels and butting him in the face. Dante stumbled backwards seeing stars. The vampire seized her opportunity and leapt onto a chair before nailing Dante in the face with a two footed kick. Dante was literally lifted off his feet and he hit the ground like the proverbial ton of bricks.

"You're not so tough." The vampire observed. "Guess the mighty Dante Skyle isn't all he's cracked up to be. Come on, get up and give me a real challenge."

"Fuck this." Dante growled as he spat out a mouthful of blood and forced himself to his feet, mad as hell. "Just remember you asked for it."

Mika's opponent swung a punch but Mika grabbed the inside of his elbow with one hand and let the vampire have it full in the face. He stumbled back swearing as Mika threw a trio of punches. A right hook knocked him sideways, while an uppercut snapped his head back and a front jab felled him. He paused briefly. This was a mistake as the vampire recovered quicker than Mika would've thought possible. He forced his body upwards, his feet hitting Mika in the face. Stunned, Mika felt a fist slam into his ribs before he was thrown bodily, his progress halted by a wall.

Empowered by rage Dante had the strength of a lion and the fury of an entire pride. He hurled himself at the vampire like an uncoiling spring and caught her around the neck. He threw her off her feet, nearly breaking her neck and closed her down before kicking her in the face. She tried to scramble away but Dante seized her by the scruff of the neck and tossed her into a corner before landing a hard punch to the back of her head. As she thrashed about attempting to get free Dante landed another brutal punch before jumping atop her. He pinned her arms to her sides with his legs and immediately started to reduce her face to little more than a pound of mince. Dante laughed as he lashed out with both fists, the sheer frenzy of his attack crushing any hope of defence.

"That's right!" He roared jubilantly. "I'm back and I'm a bloody animal yeah!"

It was at that point the male vampire utterly disregarded a still stunned Mika and attacked Dante from behind. He grabbed him by the throat and tossed him backwards, towards Mika before gallantly helping his comrade to her feet. Dante did the same with Mika albeit less dignified. He grabbed Mika's wrist and nearly dislocated his shoulder, hauling him to his feet. They faced each other again but the fight was to be short lived. Before Dante or the male vampire could do anything Mika and the female hurled themselves head on at each other. They crashed to the floor and Mika leapt upright. The female vampire did not, no doubt owing to the wooden stake Mika had just driven through her heart.

"Sileo in pacis." Mika muttered as he made the sign of the cross. Then he and Dante moved towards the male who had gone very pale all of a sudden.

"I really don't like it when people invade my personal space." Dante said in a soft deadly voice. "If I was going to let you live I'd tell you to tell Alexander Obsidian that sending lackey's never works."

The vampire however clearly had no intention of sticking around so he tossed a bottle of whisky at Dante (who caught it easily) and sprinted across the room before diving headfirst through the open window. Dante and Mika made follow but by the time they'd gotten to the window he was sprinting as fast as he could towards Dollet.

"Have you still got that sniper rifle?" Dante asked Mika.

"Let him go," Mika waved a hand dismissively. "I guess he's too terrified to be a deadly threat to humanity. Should be burn his girlfriend or bury her?"

"Who cares?" Dante snorted. "That was bracing though. It's been a while since I had a decent tussle."

"Is that what you call it?" Mika enquired. "You beat her to a bloody pulp. I wouldn't call that a tussle."

"Pardon me Ghandi but who killed her again?" Dante enquired brightly. "You can't preach to me about overdoing it. While we're on the subject do you mind enlightening me as to what the whole "sileo in pacis" thing was about?"

"It means rest in peace." Mika explained patiently, although he mentally added "you dolt" to the end of the sentence.

"She just tried to kill us." Dante exclaimed aghast. "Who cares if she rests peacefully or not?"

"Just because we're not human that doesn't mean we shouldn't exhibit humanity every now and then," Mika said reproachfully. "But to business."

"Yes, I like the subject change." Dante cheered. "What say you we find out where Alexander's hiding out, break the door down and annihilate the ape that just attacked us?"

"You know before Sid and Nancy attacked?" Mika continued. "You said something might be bad? Would you care to enlighten your poor, in the dark little brother?"

"Okay, you know how I was reading up on Swift and Alexander's past glories?" Dante proceeded to explain. "I encountered a passage that led me to believe that Alexander loves mental torture a lot more than I thought he did. One of his favourite tricks is to destroy his targets not by destroying them himself but by manipulating them into destroying each other. He gets off on it."

"So he's a sadistic, manipulative, calculating sociopath?" Mika carped. "Big whoop. We knew that already."

"You don't follow me." Dante replied. "Can't say I blame you because in the course of my enquiries I've learnt that Alexander's developed a bad case of Lord Voldemort envy. He's apparently got into Dark Magic, as if all the advantages he already has aren't enough. He has a favourite magic trick. It involves removing a human beings soul, meaning his sense of compassion, remorse and his conscience." A beat. "Bad times. The drawback is that it takes time. Oh and whatever poor sod is targeted starts to act drastically out of character."

"Really?" Mika said. He was fairly sure where Dante was going with this and the picture his theory was forming was one of potential disaster.

"Isn't that bloody interesting?" Dante nodded. "Looks like all the people that rejected us, including Quistis and Rinoa are living with a brunette, gun blade wielding time bomb. Life's an ever loving bitch innit?"

"We don't know that Squall's being affected by this." Mika reasoned. "He was drinking a lot."

"Alexander's always had delusions of world domination." Dante spat. "If you're going to take over the world who better to be your sidekick than the world's foremost swords man. The so called Hero with No Fear. I may Alexander but I know exactly how his warped excuse for a mind works. I frequently wish I don't but hey, what can you do?"

"Okay let's say for a minute you're right." Mika said. "What do you suggest we do about it?"

"Who said I should do anything about it?" Dante growled. "We risked our lives for the holier than thou members of Balamb Garden. I was shot four times, you ended up fighting a building full of terrorists and then they tossed us out like we didn't matter. Let them reap what they sow that's what I say."

"And what about Quistis?" Mika demanded. "Don't you at least care about what happens to her?"

"You'd be hard put to find something I care less about." Dante sighed. "I knew Quistis would find out what I was sooner or later. She found out and she couldn't deal. How's that my fault?"

"How predictable," Mika observed loftily. "Something goes wrong in Dante Skyle's little world but perish the thought it could be his fault somehow."

"You're not funny." Dante stated glaring threateningly at his brother who held his gaze unflinchingly. "It's not my fault Quistis ended things because she couldn't handle what I was."

"Dante," Mika sighed heavily. "In think you may well be the most insensitive wart I've ever had the misfortune of coming across. If you continue acting like you don't care about anyone or anything you'll just end up pushing people away."

"And that's bad because?" Dante glowered. "I don't trust anyone because it's safer that way. The last person I trusted was Swift and we both know how that ended. If I push everyone away, that's tough. I think I'll cope."

"I don't know why I try to talk sense into you some of the time." Mika bit off. "It's becoming ever more obvious that you are well beyond help. I'm going to bed."

"You do that." Dante muttered as he stalked into his study and closed the door with more venom than was strictly necessary. He waited five minutes before pulling out his mobile phone and dialling a number. The person on the other end picked up instantly but didn't speak. "It's me." Dante said simply. "We need to have a chat."

* * *

Christmas at Balamb Garden was frequently very busy and hectic but that didn't stop more or less the entire population enjoying the festivities as much as possible by decorating every inch that they could reach. Perhaps inevitably the decorating wasn't exactly trouble free.

"Try hanging tinsel when some junior class men have got the other end and are trying to strangle you with it." Zell said one afternoon. "I suppose we should be glad they're developing a killer's instinct."

"You know you love it." Rinoa teased him gently before nodding approvingly. "I reckon this will do."

"Stand back." Zell advised as he fired up a chainsaw before bellowing at the top of his lungs. "I am the god of hell fire!"

"There's no way this can end well." Rinoa sighed as she retreated to a safe distance as Zell raised the chainsaw and advanced much in the manner of a conquering hero towards the large conifer they'd chosen in one of the forests on the Alcauld Plains. Selphie had delegated the task of locating, felling and moving a Christmas tree to them. The diminutive magical specialist had proclaimed herself "Chief Christmas Coordinator" and was seemingly intent on working everyone to death. The tree finally crashed down and they hooked it up to one of Balamb Gardens armoured personnel carriers which was pretty much a transit van, albeit armour plated and powered by a turbo charged Lamborghini V12 engine developing nearly six hundred brake horsepower. This gave it a top speed that no van should ever have and easily enough power to drag an articulated flatbed trailer carrying a large tree.

"So what's Selphie got you doing this evening?" Rinoa asked as they started the drive back. "I'm wrapping presents for the junior class men."

"Irvine and I are supposed to hang fairy lights all over the main building." Zell muttered morosely. "I'm still trying to work out how to tell Selphie that I'm not doing it without crampons, ice axes and carabineers."

"You're on your own there I'm afraid." Rinoa said brightly. "You've got to admit though, her whole obsessive personality is a little endearing."

"We're her best friends." Zell grumbled with a face like thunder. "We're obligated to admit that her whole obsessive personality is a little endearing. It's Irvine that's pissing me off."

"How so?" Rinoa enquired.

"Selphie's too busy to deal with the individual little things so she's pawned them off on her illustrious beau who's got it into his head that his word is law." Zell muttered. "He had me shifting eighty crates of baubles yesterday."

"I think I can explain this." Rinoa said. "Irvine being Irvine has gotten Selphie a certain present. It's a collection of costumes."

"Costumes?" Zell echoed wondering as he did so if he really wanted Rinoa to elaborate.

"You know." Rinoa shrugged. "Schoolgirls, nurses, cheerleaders and so on. I guess Irvine's making with the blind loyalty to soften Selphie up."

"And to think I got her a Jack Daniels mixing kit." Zell sighed. "Some guys are just cooler you know."

* * *

Dante screeched to a halt outside the smart restaurant in Dollet's upper class area. It was probably the last place anyone would look for an impulsive vampire who rode a badly outdated motorcycle and had an alarming tendency to shoot first and ask questions later (or not at all) but that was the whole point. Dante wasn't looking forward to this particular meeting in the slightest but it was a necessary evil. If Squall really was a ticking time bomb Dante was fairly sure that bad things would ensue when he blew. If Dante had to stop the mayhem by killing Squall…well life did have its little bonuses. Dante stepped inside the restaurant and headed for the table where his contact was waiting. A waitress scuttled over.

"Yes I'll have the heart healthy omelette." Swift said before looking to Dante. "And you'll have?"

"Just a pint of cider." Dante nodded at the waitress a she took off his jacket and hung it over the back of his chair.

"You sure?" Swift asked Dante, all the while scrutinising him closely. Dante felt uncannily like an insect under a microscope.

"I'm trying to keep this as quick as possible." He replied evenly, holding Swift unblinking and uncomfortably intense gaze. "Also your company without alcohol is like having my teeth drilled."

"There's not a dentist's drill in all creation that could even scratch a vampires tooth," Swift replied. "But that's irrelevant. Very well what would you like to talk about?"

"Your brother." Dante said diving straight in. "I hear he's got a few tricks up his sleeves and I was wondering if you can expand on what I've hear."

"Sorry mate," Swift said coldly. "You'll have to give me more than that. Which brother are you talking about? I have three."

"I'm talking about Alexander and you know it." Dante replied evenly. "I've seen him, and quite recently too."

"You have?" Swift kept his voice neutral but even with his rigid mental control Dante could see he was interested. "Where? When?"

"A little over two months ago I was helping Balamb Garden track down and kill you." Dante said. "I followed a lead to a warehouse here in Dollet where your friend Marcus Foxton shot me."

"I had nothing to do with that." Swift said, deciding to pass over the subject of Foxton's mysterious resurrection. "Cut to the chase please."

"Okay so there I am on the floor, bleeding from four bullet wounds and all of a sudden there's Alexander." Dante grimaced. "He rips Foxton's head off and then takes me back to his where he lights some candles, puts on some Marvin Gaye and some sexy lingerie before he pulls the bullets out of my legs."

"Where was this?" Swift demanded.

"Come on Swift, he'll have moved on by now." Dante laughed humourlessly. "What I really want to know is it true that Alexander has moved into the black magic side of things?"

"Just the odd parlour trick." Swift said dismissively. "Nothing too heavy though, relatively speaking. It's mainly mischief making."

"That's odd because I've heard that Alexander has a favourite spell," Dante pressed relentlessly. "And I don't think even you could deny its well beyond mischief making. When he did what he did to me, I assumed that was a one-time thing but the way I heard it he's really making with a bad case of Lord Voldemort envy."

"You'll find your references to modern popular culture tend to be lost on me." Swift deadpanned. "Tell me, what else do you know about this so called favourite spell of Alexander's."

"You first," Dante growled. "I am very interested in offing Alexander and I need reassurance that you won't go running off and tell him that I'm onto him."

"You think I would align myself with Alexander?" Swift spluttered. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Wait a second," Dante cut in, noting Swift's tone and posture. "You're not down with Alexander but here's my question; Why? He's your brother."

"He wasn't my only brother." Swift replied with an almost murderous look on his features. "I had two other brothers and a sister. Over the last hundred or so years, Alexander hunted them down and killed them. He scattered their bodies across the oceans and sooner or later he'll come for me."

"Oh my god," Dante murmured. He could see the pain in Swift's eyes and found himself feeling in spite of himself, sorry for the other man. "That's it isn't it? You're after revenge."

Swift didn't reply verbally, but by the other mans look Dante was completely sure he'd hit the nail on the head. He sighed theatrically and honoured whatever higher power was controlling him with a silent symphony of verbal abuse.

"Will you help me?" Swift asked quietly, his voice uncharacteristically haunted and subdued. "Will you help me take him out of the world."

"I'll help you."

* * *

**Author Commentary: More is revealed and things are going to kick off massively in the next few chapters with Swift's whole revenge storyline. There will also be flashbacks coming up when you might meet a few of the other Obsidian siblings. The next chapter will focus on Swift's back story and why his relationship with Alexander is so turbulent. My personal highlight of this chapter was just that little scene between Zell and Rinoa. They're characters that don't interact much but I needed a small break from Dante and Mika causing mayhem left right and centre. The line about the junior class men trying to strangle Zell with tinsel holds particular significance to me as that was the very first line of fan fiction I ever wrote and only now I've had the chance to use it. I'm hoping to throw some serious emotional weight into the next chapter. I have said that Swift was based on two characters from modern popular culture, one of which is Lindsey MacDonald, played by Christian Kane in the TV show _Angel_. The other character I based him on is slowly becoming more and more obvious. If you don't figure it out I will let you know who exactly I'm on about. As ever thanks to my reviewers and readers, especially Dee and Bebedora. To all my other readers who don't review I have this to say. If you don't leave a review I can't send you a grateful fruit basket. Maybe that'll finally galvanize them into action. Thanks again to all of you. See you soon.**

**~Ally Todd **


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen: Days Gone By**

"Okay then," Swift said as he poured himself a glass of whisky before turning towards Dante and Mika in their living room. "If we're going to work together I guess I should make nice. So with that in mind; anything you want to know. Fire away."

"We want to know everything you know." Mika said. "Duplicity is such an ugly word but when you're vampires it's hardly our greatest sin is it? Sometimes it's even necessary for us to survive but fortunately now is not one of these times. I'm still not convinced you're on our side but Dante, god help us, made a convincing case to hear you out."

"You want to know everything?" Swift echoed. "I don't actually know the whole story but I'll tell you what I know. Why don't I start from the beginning? I hope you're comfortable because it's going to be a long one."

"How long are we talking about?" Mika interrupted. "How long have you been a vampire?"

"Okay first things first, I'm so much more than a vampire." Swift answered brightly as he sipped is drink before depositing himself into an armchair and smiling at both of them as if they were one big happy family. "In answer to your question, I've been what I am for a very long time."

"Well good for you." Dante grunted his first words of the exchange. "Would you care to enlighten us as to what exactly you are?"

"I'm coming to that so stop interrupting." Swift replied pleasantly. "This world is older than you can possibly comprehend. Contrary to popular mythology, it did not begin as a paradise. Before the days of humanity this world was inhabited primarily by monsters."

"You do know that monsters are still running around right?" Mika interjected sounding decidedly unimpressed.

"You've never seen a real monster." Swift contradicted them. "All the monsters in the world are tainted. Their blood is tainted like vampires. The monsters that originally walked this earth are what are known as Old Ones; pure blooded monsters that simply existed to bring about death and mayhem. Quite a charming vocation really. However, nothing lasts forever, not even the Old Ones. As humanity spread across the face of the planet the Old Ones grip on this reality began to slip. Some humans hunted down some of the weaker ones while the more powerful ones brought themselves to the point of extinction by warring among themselves."

"I have a question." Dante interrupted. "Say one of the earlier humans went up against one of the bigger, badder Old Ones. What happened to them?"

"Trust me; you don't want me to go into detail." Swift cautioned him. "Suffice to say they killed them and not with kindness. However, due primarily to their self destructive hatred of each other they weakened their grip so much it wasn't particularly hard for humans to take over the world and force the Old Ones out. However, before they faded altogether one Old One fed off a male human, mixing the blood, creating the first vampire ever. The vampire married a human woman and together they had five children."

"And we're sitting in the same room as one." Mika said, comprehension dawning on his face.

"Two points to Mika." Swift nodded. "My siblings and I are the only people to be born vampires because for some reason vampires lost the ability to procreate after us. I am a vampire but I have greatly enhanced abilities due to my age and also because as vampires moved on through the generations and they consumed more and more human blood they're powers were gradually diluted. However back to the story."

"There's more?" Mika asked.

"I said it was a long story." Swift replied. "Like most new vampires, my father wasn't entirely able to control his urges. Most vampires get a hold of themselves after maybe twenty years as I'm sure you know but his issues were life long and he ended up killing our mother. In what could be called a fit of rage two of my younger brothers, Alexander and Adrian hunted down our father and killed him. If I had been there I would've been satisfied with just killing him, but according to Adrian, Alexander didn't kill him with kindness."

"Torture?" Dante guessed.

"Got it in one." Swift confirmed. "Over the next couple of centuries Alexander started to spiral out of control. I tried to rein him in, but if I'm honest that only delayed the inevitable by maybe fifty years. He started out with torture, manipulation and murder and then move into dangerous black magic. When things got too much my brothers and I set on him and gave him the hiding of his life. We were vampires, but we weren't monsters, not at that point. We tried to knock some sense into him but he was fully aware of what he was doing. After the beating we ostracised him and that was pretty much that."

"But it wasn't." Mika muttered before looking to Swift questioningly. "Right?"

"For all his faults, his family were the most important thing to him." Swift nodded slightly. "I'd imagine being abandoned by us tipped him over the edge. He was pretty damn close to becoming a monster but we did that to him. He dropped off the radar from nigh on a thousand years, and I later learned that he let the abandonment eat away at him for that whole time."

"Talk about major family issues." Dante commented idly. "Obviously he didn't stay off the radar which to be fair is a crying shame."

"No he did not." Swift laughed bitterly. "As I'm sure you know Alexander likes revenge. He started hunting down the siblings that abandoned him. Adrian was killed first, followed by Alice and then Gaston. I guess as his big brother I was last." Then he noticed the subtle change in Dante's sense. "What?"

"I'm sorry but did you just say one of your brothers was called Gaston?" Dante whispered.

"That's right." Swift said, clearly nonplussed as to where Dante was going with this. "Swift, Alexander, Adrian, Alice and Gaston. That's all of us. What's with the sudden change?"

"I met him." Dante muttered. "Just before this whole thing started I was in Deling City and all of a sudden I'm accosted by this guy calling himself Gaston. He was making a lot of noise about the Obsidian family."

"You met an impostor." Swift said without an iota of doubt. "Gaston is dead; I know that for a fact."

"Your facts could be wrong." Dante said, unwilling to back down. "He turns up, calls himself Gaston and starts talking about your family, not to mention what you and Alexander did to me. Maybe the guy was just messing with my head but isn't it worth checking out? Maybe a couple of inches taller than me, he looked like was in his early or mid twenties, dark hair and dark eyes, possibly brown."

"What a description." Mika quipped clapping sarcastically. "On that one our work is done." Both Dante and Swift's heads turned to glare at him. "Okay I'll shut up."

"You know Mika, I'd prefer it if you could get me a whisky." Dante said, still sounding a little punch drunk. "A really big whisky."

"You know where you can insert your whisky." Mika growled. "So what do we do now?"

"You…" Swift said to Dante. "…will tell me everything about your drinking partner using my brother's name. Then we'll be paying a visit to Balamb Garden."

"I don't think the illustrious Squall Leonhart will be overjoyed to see any of us again." Mika pointed out. "Have you factored that into your equation?"

"I did say I'd pin him down and crap on his head if I ever saw him again." Dante added.

"Boys, boys." Swift laughed. "Who says that the all powerful Commander has to even know we're there?"

"Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling about this?" Mika muttered under his breath.

* * *

The male vampire that had attacked Mika and Dante didn't stop running until he reached the most exclusive hotel in Dollet. He sprinted into the lobby and made for the lift before pushing the button for the top floor penthouse. The lift opened into a ludicrously expensive looking apartment. It was completely unoccupied save for the man standing in front of the massive windows and drinking a bottle of beer.

"Where is Bethany?" Alexander asked coldly without turning around. The male vampire went pale.

"Mika Skyle killed her." He juddered, his voice barely above a whisper. "I barely got away."

"That's a pity about Bethany." Alexander said as he turned around and fixed the vampire with his gaze. "I trust you paid them back in kind for that terrible atrocity."

"They outnumbered me." The vampire began. "Initially we had them on the ropes but…"

"Oh are you going to make excuses?" Alexander enquired pleasantly. "I don't care for that. I gave you a fairly simple directive. I told you to kill at least one of the Skyle brothers but you decided to take both of them on. That was reckless."

"I didn't think…" The vampire spluttered as his face turned whiter and whiter. He scanned Alexander's faces frenziedly but there was very little in the way of pity on it.

"You see that's the problem with the world these days." Alexander continued, throwing a friendly arm around the vampire's shoulders. "No one ever thinks. They just do things and worry about the consequences later." He quickly locked his arm tightly around the vampire's neck. "It's rather pesky."

"I didn't mean to displease you." The vampire choked out as Alexander tightened his lock, throttling the vampire to the edge of consciousness before releasing him. The vampire fell to his knees, coughing and spluttering.

"I know you didn't." Alexander laughed, patting the vampire on the head patronisingly. "You wouldn't intentionally displease me. I know that because everyone with half a brain would know what happens to people who displease me. They tend to end up dead."

"Please don't kill me." The vampire juddered as he clambered to his feet. "I won't fail you again."

"I tell you what." Alexander grinned. "I won't kill you if you get out of this apartment in the next ten seconds. Before you do that however you must do something else. Colin, you failed me. Tell me you're sorry."

"I'm sorry." Colin whispered.

"There." Alexander cooed. "That wasn't so hard was it? Now get out of here. Wait, hold on one second…" A stiletto shot out of Alexander's sleeve and into his hand. He was still smiling as he thrust it directly at a very specific place on Colin's face where it stuck. "…you've got something in your eye." He shook his head regretfully as Colin dropped. "Pity. I really liked this carpet."

* * *

The Garden ballroom was packed with just about everyone in the Garden. It transpired that Selphie singlehandedly masterminding the yuletide festivities had included organising a party that Selphie would tell anyone who listened was dubbed the "Christmas Celebration". Her relentless work had even resulted in Squall agreeing to attend, though his main function was losing several hands of poker to Zell, Nida and Doctor Kadowaki before supporting the wall and hitting the bottle. He was stubbornly refusing to dance with anyone and even Rinoa couldn't move him on the subject.

"Don't worry Rin," Selphie told her friend after Squall flatly refused to dance for the fourth time. "Just wait until he's got a few jars inside him."

"Don't read too much into it." Quistis concurred as she joined them. "You know Squall. He's married to the job and then some. He's had a bit of a rough time recently but he'll come around. Take it from someone who was psychoanalyzing him for years."

"Not to mention mentally undressing him every time he walked into your classroom." Rinoa teased gently.

"I have to say I have no idea what you're talking about Rinoa." Quistis returned pulling an exaggeratedly indignantly expression. "I will have to report that unfounded accusation you know."

"Personally I don't get what you two see in Squall." Selphie said. "Back in the day I had a bit of a thing for Seifer."

"What?" Rinoa yelped conveniently forgetting that she'd also been in a relationship with Seifer before Squall.

"Well come on, psychopath thing aside he was smoking hot." Selphie continued reasonably. "He never even noticed me so I adapted. Zell was always a pretty vigorous fellow if you know what I mean."

"I'm fighting total mental breakdown here Selph." Quistis moaned. "Please, no more fuel on the fire."

"Well pardon me for letting my hormones dictate my life." Selphie shrugged before going for the plunge. "Listen up girls. I've got a bit of a secret to tell you but can it wait until tomorrow. I don't want to spoil the night."

"Secret?" Rinoa echoed uneasily. "What sort of secret? I don't like the sound of this. Not one little bit. Come on Selphie spit it out. We'll deal with it and then we can party some more."

"It's nothing bad; at least I don't think so." Selphie reassured them. "It's pretty much blown my mind. I'll tell you tomorrow because if I tell you now you won't be able to think about anything else."

"Well is you're not worried I'm not worried." Quistis said before heading for the exit. "I need some fresh air." Quistis headed out of the ballroom and proceeded through a pair of double doors before coming to an abrupt and horrified stop. Less than five metres away, leaning nonchalantly against a wall and smoking was Dante.

"There's my girl." He said before dropping the cigarette and grinding it out with the toe of his boot. "Before you even start, I can smoke all I want. The big C really isn't an issue for yours truly."

"If I skip the part where I tell you I'm not your girl anymore," Quistis growled, keeping a wary eye on him. "Maybe you can tell me just exactly what you're doing here."

"We were out for a jaunt." Dante explained casually. "Thought we should swing by and say howdy."

"We?" Quistis said.

"Oh right I brought a couple of friends along with me." Dante elaborated. "Of course my baby bro Mika is here, though he's gone walkabout. No biggie, he'll turn up. As for the other friend, well I don't know how to tell you this but he's standing right behind you."

Quistis whirled around and nearly swallowed her tongue in fright. Less than a metre from her, smiling pleasantly was Swift Obsidian. Quistis attempted to get the jump on him with a kick to the head but unfortunately her party clothes weren't the easiest to move in.

"Stupid skirt." She muttered.

"Yep I hear they're pesky." Swift said. "Put your claws away Miss Trepe. We come in peace."

"You'll forgive if I don't take your announcements of goodwill seriously." Quistis snapped before pointing flamboyantly at Dante. "He and his brother are vampires, or hadn't you heard?"

"I had now you mention it." Swift grinned before deploying his master stroke. "I turned them both after all. Before you freak out, yes I'm a vampire as well. More or less."

"Personally I think vampires get a bad rap." Dante added. "Okay we're vicious, violent animals who drink human blood to survive, but recently people seem to have gotten it into their heads that we're a bunch of brooding Nancy boys." A beat. "Fucking Twilight."

"I happen to like Twilight." Quistis snapped. In truth, Rinoa had lent her first book but Quistis had never managed to get through it. Still, is she could irritate Dante, or indeed Swift she'd say anything.

"Figures." Dante shrugged. "Seriously Quistis, if we were here for trouble you'd be able to tell by the mayhem and carnage. We came here to talk, specifically to you and I guess it's in your interests to listen to us. You've got no reason to trust myself or Swift and for the record I'm sorry I didn't tell you what I was. I tell you what. If Mika doesn't make a good case for you to hear us out, we'll leave immediately."

"Though I wouldn't love your chances if we did." Swift muttered in the background.

"Alright," Quistis sighed. "Everything you're saying it making it pretty clear you think we need you. Fair warning though, if this is a set up I'll make all three of you sorry you were born."

"I bet you will." Swift grinned as Dante pulled out his phone and dialled Mika to arrange a meeting point. "I've known a few Blue Mages over the years and I've seen what they can do."

Mika was waiting for them in one of the classrooms. He was not alone however. Sitting in, or more accurately tied to one of the chairs was Rinoa. She was gagged and as Dante, Swift and Quistis walked in she started yelling through the gag in a manner that made Dante completely sure she wasn't saying hello and wishing them well.

"What is this?" Quistis yelled rounding on Mika. "Why have you tied her up? Why won't you let her speak?"

"Because she insulted me." Mika explained calmly. "She called me some very hurtful things. She also attempted to assault me. In fact, I think it's fair to say she's behaved in a very unladylike fashion."

"Let her go now Mika!" Quistis ordered. "There was me thinking you were the nice brother."

"Okay." Mika said simply. He crouched in front of Rinoa. "Now Rinoa, I really didn't want to tie you up but needs must. When I take the gag off, I'm sure your first instinct will be to scream and curse and tell us what trouble we're in. Then when I untie you, you may feel like having a pop at us and trying to escape. Here's my advice. Don't." He ripped the gag out and tossed it aside.

"Animal!" Rinoa screamed. "I'll see you hang for this! All of you! I'll personally insure you're shaved bald, covered in tar and feathers and set alight as you dangle!"

"Isn't she magnificent?" Mika proclaimed as he sliced through her ropes. "She's been like this ever since I dragged her out of the ballroom. I think I'm in love."

"Savage!" Rinoa struck out at him but Mika effortlessly caught her fist and held it fast.

"Remember what I just told you Rinoa." He said evenly. "It may be hard to believe but we are here to help you, and for what it's worth Swift doesn't want to kidnap you right now. Let us help you."

"What makes you think we need your help?" Quistis demanded.

"Squall's behaviour for one thing." Dante interjected. "We have reason the believe that it's not him deliberately being a dick, or alcohol that's causing him to act the way he is."

"Squall's been much better recently." Rinoa shot back. This wasn't quite true. There hadn't been a marked improvement in Squall's attitude but I hadn't got any worse either.

"I surmised as much." Swift nodded knowledgeably. "This is pure Alexander. It's got his fingerprints all over it."

"Who's Alexander?" Rinoa asked.

"My sociopath of a brother and the primary reason I was very interested in abducting you a couple of months ago." Swift answered. "For some reason he's very interested in acquiring a Sorceress. He doesn't know you exist so I was going to somehow drop it into his shell like and then use you as bait to draw him out. Then I'd proceed to kill him."

"There was me thinking Mika and I had cornered the market on dysfunctional brotherhoods." Dante grinned before taking up the narrative. "Ever since we left this establishment I've been doing my homework on the Obsidian family, Alexander in particular. During the course of my enquiries I discovered that Alexander likes to mess with people, especially through the use of black magic."

"What's that got to do with us?" Quistis enquired.

"One of Alexander's favourite tricks is to remove someone's soul." Dante went on with an oddly twisted smile. "I takes time but the poor sod that's targeted tends to act vastly out of character. Now much as I hate to think it, Alexander's most recent target could be…"

"Squall." Rinoa finished dully while both Quistis and Mika nodded. "Do you have any proof?"

"He doesn't but I do." Swift said. "Squall's been, for want of a better word acting a bit more like himself recently, yes? That's vintage Alexander. If Squall's recent behaviour was indeed caused by Alexander using this particular spell on him than I can guess what's coming next. He'll back off; making everyone think it's over before delivering a final knockout blow. This is going to get messy and soon."

"What will happen to Squall if Alexander succeeds in removing his soul?" Rinoa asked, wondering as she did so if she really wanted to know.

"What you need to understand about humans is they have three very specific parts to them." Swift continued. "The body, the spirit and the soul. The body is just a hunk of meat. The spirit carries intelligence and memories. The soul…it carries emotions and other intangibles, such as the conscience. Long story short, someone with a body and spirit but no soul becomes a sociopath devoid of humanity, incapable of telling right from wrong."

"Like a vampire." Quistis muttered.

"Trust me on this," Swift said ominously, pointedly ignoring Quistis. "Someone with Squall's skills but no soul is not going to be a good day out. He'll attempt to kill everyone in his path, and given that this _is _Squall we're talking about it's odds on he'll succeed."

"Doom and gloom much." Rinoa carped sarcastically. "I think it's safe to say that no one will ever accuse you of jumping to the worst possible conclusion."

"We didn't jump." Dante quipped. "We took a tiny step and there the worst possible conclusion was."

"I think we'd know if Squall's soul was slowly being removed by an ancient vampire who needs a Sorceress for something that remains conveniently ambiguous." Rinoa said stubbornly. "Wait, let me guess. It isn't world domination by any chance?"

"You're not funny." Swift said flatly. "I'm working on the basis that Alexander is responsible for Squall's drastic personality changes recently. If he goes crazy and I have to take drastic action, don't think I'll hesitate because I won't. I came here for two reasons. One; to give you a heads up. Two; to make sure I'm right about Alexander and Squall."

"You sound like you want to be right." Quistis observed.

"Of course I don't want to be right." Swift replied. "I've spent most of my life keeping a lid on some very nasty things indeed, and number one with the bullet is Alexander. Don't get me wrong, none of my siblings are angels and when it suits my aims I kill, maim and torment but Alexander is the worst thing you'll ever face."

"You'd be surprised what we've faced in our time." Rinoa fired back.

"Let me guess, Sorceress Ultimecia?" Swift laughed bitterly. "Big whoop. Alexander is on to you for some reason. You don't know hurt because the Second Sorceress War is going to seem like cake after what he'll put you through and he's not a fan of easy death. Are you going to help us put a stop to him once and for all?"

"If we say yes what do we have to do?" Quistis asked.

"We need Quistis to keep an eye on Squall, look out for him doing anything out of the ordinary." Mika spoke up. "As for Rinoa, she's the only person who can establish beyond any doubt if Alexander is involved. Rinoa, tell me what you know about trances?"

"Not much." Rinoa answered.

"Well the way I can understand it Alexander's not the only member of the family who's got into magic." Dante grinned. "Tell me if I'm wrong Swift. Basically the spell is tailored towards Sorceresses. You essentially go into a trance and if Squall's ever had a spell cast on him specifically you'll see some kind of signature."

"Like what?" Rinoa asked.

"Maybe a cloud of smoke around him or a shadowy hand choking him." Swift answered. "Additionally if you see Alexander anywhere near him, than we know for sure."

"I tell you what girls." Dante said. "You've got three days to decide. Quistis has still got my number. We're staying at the Balamb Hotel. Call me when you decide."

"What are you thinking?" Rinoa asked Quistis as the three vampires left the room, Swift marching out like a storm trooper, while Mika sauntered out casually. Dante rather predictably blew Quistis a kiss before following the others with a self-indulgent swagger.

"I know what I'm thinking." Quistis said. "First things first, I'm taking this to Squall first thing tomorrow morning."

* * *

**Author Commentary: I didn't die of bubonic plague. Yay me! I know, I know that has to be some sort of record for the largest amount of exposition crammed into one chapter. I even inserted the scene with Alexander to split things up a bit. The next chapter will have a good amount of action and you'll see a bit more of what exactly Swift is capable of. I love the interplay between Mika and Dante. It's hands down one of my very favourite things to write because I've got a two years younger brother that I've based Mika around (Tidus Zammera in the BC while we're at it). As for Selphie's secret, it's seriously going to shake up things for a good while. Leave a comment to let me know what you think she's got going on. Or not, your call. You'll find out soon enough. For those of you who like the Dante/Quistis relationship there will be a great deal of sexual tension in upcoming chapters. Thanks eternal go out to Dee and Bebedora, my favourite reviewers. Please keep them coming and if any other readers want to leave me one or two please feel free. I'll be seeing you soon with a great deal of mayhem.**

**~Ally Todd**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen: Room Service**

"So Swift Obsidian and the Skyle brothers all think that some sort of ancient vampire is using dark magic to remove my soul?" Squall enquired of Rinoa and Quistis who had just finished describing their meeting with the vampires the previous night. "That has got to be one of the most stupid things I have ever heard."

"That was my original reaction as well," Quistis ventured carefully. "But they seemed quite convinced that was what was happening. If you looked into their eyes, you could tell they were telling the truth."

"They thought they were telling the truth." Squall corrected. "We know that all three of them are world class actors. They're trying to mess with us, confuse us. Why? I do not know. However convincing they may have sounded you've got to remember that these guys are vampires and it's pretty obvious that they're not friends to us. Swift and Dante aren't at any rate. Mika's the interesting one in my opinion. If you figure out what makes him tick, let me know. Personally I'm very interested."

"They did describe the effects of this soul removing mojo, if it exists." Rinoa put in hesitantly. "It did sound eerily close to your behaviour two months ago."

"I'd like to keep that in the past if it's all the same to you." Squall replied curtly. "I'm not proud of the way I acted but we all know it was the drink, not some non-existent spell that's supposed to turn me into a nutcase. They're messing with us, probably for no reason other than their own twisted amusement."

"Okay we're on board with that." Quistis relented. "Here's my question. What are we going to do about them? If we let them get away with screwing with us it sends the wrong message to anyone else who fancies their chances."

"Agreed," Squall nodded decisively. "The time for touchy feely is past. We should lift them, toss them in the cells and then get some answers. Find out Dante's whole story and also find out what makes Mika tick."

"You mean torture them don't you?" Rinoa asked.

"Hopefully it won't come to that." Squall attempted a reassuring smile. "It's a distinct possibility though, so I'm not ruling it out at this moment in time."

"Okay so we go in and grab Mika and Dante." Quistis said. "Not that it's a bad idea, personally I'd very much like to squeeze answers out of Dante, and this time I won't be using my charm, but I can see a pretty major flaw. What about Swift?"

"What about him?" Squall enquired.

"It's pretty obvious that he's working with Mika and Dante." Quistis elaborated. "I may be wrong but I don't think abducting his cronies will have him dancing a jig. I doubt he'll let us take them. He'll probably attempt to stop us and we already know that he can kick our asses without even tensing a muscle."

"We'll be able to handle him." Squall said confidently. "Swift is probably armed and definitely dangerous, and I'm well aware that based on what we've seen armed and dangerous hardly does him justice. I would dearly like to see him take on maybe forty SeeD Commandos, all armed to the teeth."

"Do you want me to put together a team of our forty best qualified SeeD's?" Quistis asked.

"See that it's done." Squall said. "Quistis, make sure that Zell, Selphie, Irvine and yourself are not on the team. It's not up for discussion. I can't risk my closest friends. We should be able to overwhelm all three of them through strength of numbers, but make no mistake this is a high risk job but I'm not about gamble my friend's lives on it. Now you say that Dante told you how to get in touch."

"I've still got his mobile number." Quistis answered. "Do you want me to call and arrange a meeting?"

"No, he'd have to be a complete fruitcake to fall for that one." Squall shook his head firmly. "Can you find out where he is?"

"He's staying at the Balamb Hotel." Rinoa interjected. "He said so last night." Off their looks she pouted. "What? I can't have useful information?"

"Okay Quistis, assemble a team." Squall ordered. "A big one. Tell them to report to the lecture theatre in twenty minutes. Rinoa? Don't you have class to get to? I'll let you know when we've got them. I know you bonded with Mika in Esthar, so if you want to you can sit in on his interrogation. I'm hoping he'll be reasonable and we won't have to resort to torture."

"But you're going to torture Dante aren't you?" Rinoa asked.

"Probably." Squall sighed. "He's not the forthcoming type as I'm sure you've noticed. I don't enjoy authorising torture and prisoners but sometimes the end justifies the means. Dante, Mika and Swift have been promoted from major pain the ass to very real threat to us in particular. Come on Rinoa, what's the problem?"

"Before I met you Galbadia captured Zone and Watts." Rinoa explained quietly. "Seifer helped me rescue them but we were too late. Watts was practically incoherent. He'd been water boarded continuously. Zone was even worse. It looked like Galbadian Intelligence had beaten him half to death and whipped him non-stop. He's still got the marks."

"Dante, Mika and Swift are hardly innocent." Squall replied. "Rinoa, being Commander means making hard decisions. We need to know what's going on with these guys. Dante is not going to fess up the information voluntarily. How do you suggest we get it out of him?"

"But it's not right!" Rinoa practically shouted. "Just because they're monsters that doesn't mean we should stoop to their level."

"You seem awfully concerned for Dante's welfare all of a sudden." Squall said eyeing her shrewdly.

"It's just…do you remember when Swift turned up and kicked our door in?" Rinoa explained. "Dante helped me and then jumped into a fight with a guy that could rip him limb from limb without asking for anything. If anything, maybe that earns him a little leniency on your part?"

"I would be delighted if Dante opened up without us having to torture him." Squall replied. "Thrilled. I don't see it happening do you? Now you're going to be late for class and while your efforts during the Second Sorceress War might earn you a few favours from our more temperate staff members I can't see Instructor Teal extending you that courtesy this side of Judgement Day, can you?"

* * *

The last of the handpicked SeeD assault team filed into the lecture theatre. Quistis was assisting with the planning stage while Squall would be the entire team leader so they stood at the front of the room. Squall cleared his throat.

"Thank you all for coming." He said, his voice ringing throughout the room. "You've been picked for this job because you are the very best and this job requires you to be at your very best. If anyone has any doubts about whether or not they can deliver, they should leave now." No one moved so Squall looked to Quistis.

"There are three targets on this job." Quistis called up two head and shoulders pictures, one of Mika and one of Dante on the projector screen. "These two you may be familiar with; Dante Skyle and his younger brother Mika. Ideally we'd like to take them both alive, but not at the expense of any of your lives so if it's you or them, you're authorised to use lethal force. Both are proficient in armed and unarmed combat and should be considered armed and dangerous at all times. If it is only possible to detain one of them, Mika is the priority." Quistis tapped a command in on the keyboard and a third picture joined the other two.

"This is Swift Obsidian." Squall took over. "We don't have much on him but as far as we can tell he's some sort of freelance mercenary. He is of interest to us but not at the expense of our primary targets. You should also know that Swift is highly dangerous, far superior to Dante and Mika. He should not be approached or attacked unless he shows specific hostile intent. He has exhibited extreme skills in unarmed combat and he should be treated as armed and dangerous at all times, regardless of circumstances. Even if he's on the ground do not take your eyes off him. That's all you really need to know. Go and get suited up, and load your guns with armour piercing bullets. Meet in the Parking Lot at noon."

As the team trooped out Quistis looked up at Squall questioningly. He returned her gaze unflinchingly.

"What?" The Commander enquired.

"You neglected to mention that all three targets are you-know-whats." Quistis said severely. "Don't you think that forty of our finest men and women deserved to know that little tid-bit?"

"They're all too smart to succumb to over confidence." Squall replied. "They're taking this mission seriously and they all know that Mika, Dante and especially Swift are capable of killing them, but that's where surprise, speed and overwhelming aggression comes in."

"Don't you think they ought to know anyway?" Quistis asked exasperatedly. "I don't know about you but I'd like to know what I'm about to go up against however outlandish it is."

"I'm not telling them that they're going up against vampires." Squall told Quistis stubbornly. "Final. That said however, I did have Talon fit the weapons with UV torches instead of the usual ones. Every source I've read says vampires don't like ultraviolet light."

"I'm fairly sure I've seen both Dante and Mika wander around in broad daylight." Quistis replied with equal doggedness. "So obviously the ultraviolet light thing is erroneous."

"Maybe," Squall fired back. "But maybe not. Maybe ultraviolet light doesn't kill vampires, but several sources I've consulted say that it disorientates and stuns them if they're not expecting it. So short of loading the guns with wooden bullets which would be difficult to explain, UV torches might give us the edge we need."

"It kills me to admit this," Quistis said. "But that's actually a fairly good point. Let's hope Mika and Dante can enlighten us as to the fact and fiction where vampires are concerned."

* * *

Squall opted to start the attack at dawn, but there were still innocent people in the Balamb Hotel, clients and staff. That didn't mean however that the SeeD teams would be using kid gloves in clearing the building. Squall pulled his gas mask on and pulled out a grenade from his belt kit. He popped the pin, barged the door to the reception open and tossed the grenade in. With a silent explosion a great cloud of tear gas erupted, disorientating everyone in the vicinity. The SeeD forces swept in and manhandled everyone into the open air. Squall leapt over the desk and checked the guest list, quickly establishing that Swift, Dante and Mika were all staying in separate rooms on the top floor. They hadn't even had the presence of mind to use false names. It was almost too easy. Squall signalled and two of the SeeD member produced handheld metal battering rams.

"Okay now these men are extremely dangerous." Squall reminded them as they converged on Mika and Dante's rooms. "Let's keep them contained and preferably alive, though not at the cost of your own lives."

The SeeD men carrying the battering rams stood in front of the doors while everyone loaded their weapons and turned their torches on. When frame charges weren't practical, SeeD used one man battering rams, along the length of which a piston fired when it struck a hard object, increasing the force substantially. Squall tensed outside Dante's room before nodding. Both doors were smashed of their hinges. The SeeD members poured into Mika's room but before the same could happen with Dante's a pair of arms grabbed the man with the battering ram and tossed him into his fellows, effectively hindering their presence.

"You're paying for that door you know!" A familiar voice called from within the room right before a burst of automatic gun fire kept them back. Squall cursed. This was already going wrong.

"Dante this is Squall Leonhart!" Squall called out. "We don't want to hurt you so just surrender. We've got you outnumbered."

"Squall, how corking to see you!" Dante called back merrily. "I do seem to remember promising to crap on your head if I ever saw you again."

"We just want to talk to you Dante." Squall ground his teeth. "We will get what we came for but you can walk out or be carried out. Your choice."

While Squall and Dante were trading barbs Mika was opting for a far more violent reply to the intended abduction. The door had been smashed in and Mika had already been moving at the first SeeD member entered. Before he could bring his gun to bear Mika had slammed his elbow into the SeeD's throat. He'd held back a little bit to avoid killing him but the blow was still sufficient to blast the man off his feet and into unconsciousness. Mika dropped to the floor and swung his legs around, taking a second SeeD's legs from beneath him. He grabbed the SeeD by his gasmask and put him out with a swift rabbit punch to the forehead. He skittered aside to avoid a burst of gun fire before grabbing his M16 and returning fire. The offender took three bullets in the chest and was thrown off her feet. If it hadn't been for her bulletproof vest she would've been dead instead of suffering broken ribs.

"I really don't like being shot at!" Mika yelled before catching a flash bang grenade that was lobed his way and tossing it right back. It detonated among the SeeD team and Mika danced forwards and hurled himself head on at them capitalising on the distraction.

The SeeD's focusing on Dante had gotten over their fear and six of the bravest had made it into the room. Dante smiled wolfishly before making sure they regretted it. He went at them like a thunderbolt, howling like a wolf for added effect. He dropped one by kicking her in the chest and then the face, before grabbing the second by his lapels and hurling him headfirst through the window. The fall wasn't enough to kill the SeeD mainly due to the protective gear and junctioned Guardian Forces but he sure as hell wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. Dante sidestepped a burst of gun fire before kicking his assailant's gun from his hand and flattening a palm drove it into the SeeD's temple before shattering the fourth's jaw with a savage upwards kick. He left the most ostentatious for last. He seized the fifth SeeD by the throat rolled onto his back, and threw her headfirst into a wall. She took a second to leap back to her feet but it was a second too long and she was flattened by the sixth.

* * *

Darren Steele was the leader of the SeeD team that Squall Leonhart had put on long term standby around Edea Kramer's orphanage on the Cape of Good Hope. Even four years after the Second Sorceress War, there were a number of parties offering substantial rewards for Edea, dead or alive and the various bounty hunters and paid assassins weren't about to lose any sleep over children being caught in the crossfire. Darren was drinking a bottle of mineral water when he noticed the man walking towards him. He recapped his bottle, checked the sawn off shotgun holstered at his side and loosening the quick release on his sword sheath.

"Stop right there!" He shouted aggressively, hoping the rest of his team might hear him. The man had no obvious weapons but the SeeD training Darren had received had told him to always assume someone is armed.

"Hey, how're you doing?" The man said in a pleasant and cultivated voice. "Please don't be alarmed. I mean you no harm. Can you tell me where I might find Edea Kramer?"

"Who wants to know?" These were the last words Darren ever spoke. The man grasped his shoulder with one hand and punched into his chest with the other. His hand erupted out of Darren's back holding his heart.

"The name's Alexander." The man said before callously shoving Darren's body into a nearby crevasse and heading on towards the orphanage. He knocked three times on the heavy wooden door and smiled as it opened. "Hello beautiful."

"Alexander," Edea nodded at him, before noticing Alexander's scarlet hand. "What have you done?"

"Not important." Alexander replied cheerfully. "Now are you going to invite me in or not?"

"I have children in here." Edea hurled back angrily, although there was an undercurrent of fear in her voice, and the smirk on Alexander's face told her he heard it. "It's never going to happen."

"Oh but it is." Alexander said with a glint of steel in his eyes. "You can either invite me in or I can simply burn your precious orphanage, as well as everyone in it to the ground. Oh and if you think that the rent-a-cop SeeD team I just killed can stop me, I wouldn't bet on it."

"If I let you in, do I have you word you won't hurt my kids?" Edea asked.

"I wouldn't have though you were in any position to negotiate with me," Alexander grunted. "But I think we have to have some chit chat don't you?"

"Depends on what we have chit chat about." Edea raised one slender eyebrow just noticeably.

"Sorceress'." Alexander replied. "That's what we're going to have chit chat about. I think it's fairly obvious that you're the only person alive who knows what it's like to be a Sorceress."

Edea very nearly contradicted Alexander, telling him that Rinoa Heartilly had a pretty good idea but she knew that giving up Rinoa to someone like Alexander would probably lead to pretty monumental mayhem and a great deal of carnage. It was better to hide this information for now at least. If you knew something Alexander didn't, you had a hold over him. Edea sighed.

"Come in Alexander."

* * *

It was pretty much inevitable that Mika's passive aggressive (figuratively speaking) actions would eventually result in the SeeD forces gaining the upper hand. Mika was busy reducing one SeeD's face to a pound of mince when another blindsided him and nailed him in the gut with the butt of her weapon. Mika stumbled and took another blow to the face, knocking him to the floor. The SeeD raised her weapon, ready to deliver a knockout blow to the back of Mika's head. It was at that point a hand reached out of the shadows behind the door and stopped the weapon's descent cold.

"That's not very nice." Swift said before backhanding the SeeD hard enough the throw her through the window, across the harbour and into the ocean.

"Contact!" Another SeeD yelled as he opened fire on Swift (who easily ducked the spray of bullets). "We have contact on Swift Obsidian."

"I suppose surrender is out of the question." Swift grunted before he went into action against the SeeD's. Roundhouse kicks, uppercuts, sidekicks, leaps, punching and twirling in a jaw dropping, lightning fast battle dance such as the world had never seen before. The SeeD's fell like corn to a reaper as Swift hurled himself head on at them. Nothing, not even their intensive SeeD training and battle experience had prepared them for this. In less than thirty seconds Swift had singlehandedly demolished an entire SeeD task force. He advanced on Squall, who had drawn the Lion Heart but was still backing away. Swift was quickly joined by Dante and a slightly dazed Mika. As Squall pointed his gun blade at them, all three faces shifted into the demonic visages of vampires, Swift's features considerably more pronounced than Mika or Dante's.

"You look a little pale there Squall." Dante observed with a bloodthirsty grin. "Might I suggest a good night's rest? Medicine? Or maybe, oh I don't know, evisceration?"

"Calm down Dante." Swift growled. "We'll only get violent if he attacks us. I doubt he'll take that course of action because he knows how insanely stupid that would be. You're good Squall, but there's three of us and one of you. You're not Superman."

"People have always underestimated me." Squall replied. "Seifer Almasy, Sorceress Ultimecia and her pet Guardian Force Griever all made that mistake. Where are they now?"

"The latter two are dead I believe." Swift continued pleasantly. "As for Almasy, he's a fugitive. However, fighting is a lot like gambling, it doesn't matter how skilled you are, or how much you practise. Eventually, the day will come when you lose. All that remains to be seen is this; is today that day?"

"What do you want with us?" Mika demanded of Squall. "What do you want to know about us?"

"Everything." Squall shot back. "Who you all are? What's fact and fiction about vampires? Why you're messing with us? The truth about Dante's missing months?"

"What makes you think we'd tell you anything?" Dante shouted moving forwards. Mika seized the back of his brother's jacket and dragged him backwards.

"Well the initial plan was to grab you, take you back to Garden and torture it out of you if we had to." Squall spared the unconscious SeeD's a glance. "Sometimes plans don't transfer smoothly from paper to real life."

"To coin a popular human phrase; duh." Dante laughed humourlessly. "I think this fiasco puts you in the running for the "epic failure of the year award"."

"Are you going to kill me or just continue with the colour commentary?" Squall demanded. "Personally I'd prefer the former."

"Well that would effectively negate the chances of my little brother making you go psycho at a moment's notice." Swift nodded. "He's rather pesky because he doesn't give much warning before he tosses a monkey wrench, in this case the dark side of your psyche into the works."

"Now we're getting it." Squall chuckled bitterly. "Tell me, what makes you think that my soul is being removed by some sort of ancient vampire? I can't remember the last time I heard crap of that magnitude."

"I sense you want evidence." Swift growled. "Don't you worry your pretty little head over that darling. We'll get some."

"Are you bent?" Dante enquired. Off Swift's look he raised his hands. "I'm sorry. You just sounded really bent there."

"I would dearly love to see you come up with some evidence that your crackpot theory has legitimate ramifications." Squall goaded them. "Don't bother keeping in touch. Bye now."

"Do something before I actually pop him one." Dante said to Swift between gritted teeth. Swift sighed and picked up a handgun that had been dropped. He spun it in his hand until he was holding it by the barrel. Then, quick as a flash he hurled it at Squall, clocking him between the eyes. The Commander dropped, poleaxed and out for the count.

"That was cool." Mika admitted grudgingly.

"I can tell you," Swift grinned. "When you've been around for as long as I have you tend to pick up near little parlour tricks like that one. Let's face it. The guy had it coming. He's luck that's all I did."

"He's also lucky it was you he came up against and not Alexander." Dante concurred. "I hate to admit it, but you do have your honourable side. You really don't kill when you don't have to."

"It's one of my best qualities." Swift nodded. "I think the worst injuries these SeeD people suffered are a few broken bones. I had the sense to use minimal force. Anyway, Squall's squandered his chance at gaining three invaluable allies."

"What a plank." Dante added.

* * *

**Author Commentary: I'm sorry this took so long, there were a number of factors I had to deal with but never let it be said that I don't come through. This may well be my last chapter before Christmas but on the off chance it's not I'll put up the next instalment for you to read while you're eating turkey or whatever you have. The realist in me tends to doubt the probability of that happening though, as I'm likely to become apocalyptically busy over the next few days. While we're on the subject I am going to be seriously pissed off if the world ends on Thursday before I finish this fic. I sincerely hope I delivered on the action front in this chapter, and of course I enjoyed another scene with Alexander moving behind the scenes and making a little mayhem. For those fans of Edea don't worry. She's not in any immediate danger. At least not yet. Trust Uncle Ally on this, things are going to kick off big style in upcoming chapters and we'll see a major character turn. Rinoa's reservations about torture will be built on and we may well see some sexual tension between Mika and Rinoa. As for Selphie's big secret, I am smart enough to know that you've all probably got a good idea of what it is. You'll find out sooner rather than later. Feel free to tell me your theories. I'm too far gone to change it now. Thank you so much to all my readers and reviewers, especially Dee and Bebedora. Please leave a review to let me know what you think. I'm dying for some feedback. I'd like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. If you don't celebrate Christmas, then just enjoy your holidays. Until next time…**

**~Ally Todd**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen: Fools Rush In**

Quistis and Rinoa sat down in a secluded corner of the canteen facing Selphie over the table. Usually Selphie was a pretty outgoing and open personality but now she was twisting her fingers together anxiously and chewing her lip nervously. Rinoa exchanged a glance with Quistis who was a master at reading body language. The blonde sighed.

"Okay Selphie," She said all business. "You've got something on your mind, so spit it out."

"If only it was that easy." Selphie snorted. "I know how people around here see me. They think I'm secure. I've got a good job, one hell of a pay cheque and a devoted boyfriend but this secret I've got could cause my world to self-destruct in a heart-beat."

"Well if you don't tell us what it is we can't help you much." Rinoa pointed out. "So come on Selph, fess up."

"Alright fine." Selphie sighed and rolled her eyes before unzipping her bag with more venom that was strictly necessary. "Allow me to use a visual aid." She pulled out an item and set it on the table.

"This is…" Quistis said as she picked the item up and examined it closely.

"A pregnancy test." Selphie completed despondently. "A positive pregnancy test to be exact. One of five I took on the off chance that the first one was defective."

There was a long silence as Quistis and Rinoa digested what Selphie was telling them. Quistis dropped the pregnancy test and gaped at Selphie as if she'd just grown an extra head. It was Rinoa who reacted first. The reaction involved an inarticulate squeal and diving over the table and seizing Selphie in a hug so tight Selphie began to fear for her ribs.

"Congratulations!" Rinoa squealed.

"I'm glad you're so happy for me." Selphie managed to choke out as Rinoa tightened her hug so much Selphie was fairly sure the raven haired Sorceress had been a reticulated python in a past life. "Okay oxygen becoming an issue now."

"Awkward question." Quistis said after recovering her powers of speech. "Irvine is the father right?"

"What do I look like?" Selphie demanded indignantly. "I hold fidelity in the highest regard for your information so don't even go there. Irvine is the father and no I haven't told him yet. That'll be a picnic."

"Sorry Selph," Quistis backpedalled quickly. "You know how my foot likes to live in my mouth. Sorry."

"Well are my hormones out of whack or what?" Selphie laughed. "Hello, crazy pregnant lady, aisle nine."

"Do you know how far along you are?" Rinoa asked.

"Not long." Selphie shrugged. "The Doctor's the only one who knows apart from you two and she guessed I was maybe two or three weeks pregnant."

"Well you're going to have to tell Irvine obviously." Quistis said. "I guess Cid and Squall also need to know because the Garden Code states that you have to be suspended from operations for the duration of your pregnancy. That said Squall is going to hit the roof. I think the primary reason he got the Doctor to hand out contraception to anyone in this place that is sexually active is so that his best people aren't put out of action for nine months or so."

"Squall may be my boss professionally but my personal life is no concern of his." Selphie bit off.

"Speaking of, have you decided what you're going to do?" Rinoa asked brightly. "You'll have to consider all the options. Are you going to get rid of it, or put it up for adoption?"

"No, to both." Selphie answered immediately. "Nothing's set in stone as I'll have to talk to Irvine but I've always been opposed to abortion. It's a little different when it's your body granted but I've also always wanted to be a mother."

"I'm not convinced Irvine will see it that way." Rinoa reasoned. "If you want to tell him I'll come with for moral support." Both girls turned to Quistis and she was about to pledge her support when the pager at her belt beeped. She checked it and let out a sigh of frustration, though inwardly she was glad she could escape this chat and have time to digest this new development.

* * *

When Quistis got to Squall's office she immediately contemplated about facing and heading back to help Rinoa and Selphie tell Irvine he was going to be a father because that would be infinitely easier to handle then the tableau before her. Standing ten feet apart were Squall and Cid. As ever Squall was inscrutable but to say the least Cid wasn't a happy bunny. Purple in the face, the portly Headmaster was far too engrossed in shouting himself hoarse at the Commander to notice Quistis.

"What were you thinking?" Cid bellowed. "You start a public fire fight in a hotel; scare the living hell out of half of Balamb, fail to capture three freelance mercenaries who are still at large! Am I missing anything?"

"With all due respect I don't view this incident as a failure." Squall replied evenly. "Dante Skyle, Mika Skyle and Swift Obsidian have all shown us they are highly proficient in unarmed combat. Aside from a few broken ribs, superficial internal bleeding and a smorgasbord of cuts and bruises the entire SeeD team survived. Going in I expected that if they resisted capture SeeD members would probably die, but they're all alive. Dante, Mika and Swift could've killed them but they didn't so clearly they're not done with us yet."

"That's irrelevant!" Cid roared spraying Squall with spit. "You haven't even told me why you're so obsessed with capturing these guys."

"Two main reasons." Squall fired back. "One; I'm fairly sure they're messing us around and if they can do it there's no telling who else will try it. Two; they've got it into their heads that Swift's brother Alexander, who by all accounts is a grade one psychopath, is using dark magic to remove my soul and turn me into a remorseless killing machine. We were hoping to apprehend all three of them and squeeze information out of them."

"That still doesn't justify dropping a mayhem bomb on Balamb the way you did." Cid was apparently not in a forgiving mood. "The phrase "fools rush in" springs to mind."

"With respect sir," Quistis said as she came in and closed the door. "I think Squall acted well. These men are all extremely dangerous and I don't think two of them, meaning Dante and Swift would cave if were to try a charm offensive. We didn't capture them, this is true but if we had and the only casualties were a couple of shell shocked townsfolk I'd say that's a price well worth paying. As for our next move I recommend we focus on Dante."

"Focus on Dante?" Squall echoed uneasily. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, and don't bite my head off Squall," Quistis began hesitantly. "I pumped Dante for information before. Is there any reason why that won't work again?"

"Absolutely not!" Squall barked belligerently. "For one thing Dante's clever enough to know that he's not exactly flavour of the month with you, and secondly I wasn't too keen on that approach the first time you tried it."

"If you have a better plan I'm all ears." Quistis replied.

"Give me time." Squall said though his tone was utterly devoid of conviction.

"Time is the one thing we don't have any of." Quistis hurled back. "I'm not about to throw myself at him, he'd smell a rat the size of a Hexadragon. But if I play it well I'll have him wrapped round my little finger in no time. We know that Dante hates Alexander Obsidian so maybe we could play that angle. Then we get the information we need. I'm willing to put my neck on the line to get a result."

"Why don't we approach Mika instead?" Cid suggested resignedly. "You've already got history with Dante and from what I've heard Mika is a lot more passive aggressive and about twenty times as trustworthy."

"That's why it has to be Dante." Quistis said. "Mika would smell duplicity in a second but Dante wouldn't. Mika's smart, irritatingly so but Dante isn't among the greatest thinkers in our time. I get the feeling he follows his blood which certainly doesn't run in the direction of his brain. I can get the info we need out of him and all I need is for you two to show a little faith in me."

"What if Dante figures out what you're up to?" Squall demanded. "I don't think he'll give you the benefit of the doubt and offer you the cab fare home."

"I can handle myself." Quistis said stubbornly. "Besides, it you'd let me come along on yesterday's operation we'd probably be torturing them now. One blast of Bad Breath and they wouldn't know what planet they were on."

"I'm not going to win here am I?" Squall sighed.

"Probably not." Quistis said brightly. "It worked before and with a few tweaks there's no reason to believe it won't work again."

"Okay fine," Squall relented. "But you're not going in alone and that's final. You'll be backed up by armed SeeD's at all times. Cid can you select our best close protection specialists and get the paperwork allowing them to carry weapons and if necessary everywhere. Dante's dangerous and your safety is paramount."

"I didn't know you cared." Quistis chuckled.

"Of course I care." Squall thundered as Cid headed out. "That's why I'm going to make sure your bodyguards are provided with UV gun torches and explosive rounds. From what I understand bullets are not reliable where the toughened muscles and bones of vampires are concerned. Explosive rounds on the other hand…" He left the sentence hanging.

"Mika was very nearly killed by two bullets in the back." Quistis reminded Squall reasonably.

"Yeah but he wasn't and I think we know why." Squall replied. "If Dante tries to hurt you, or indeed anyone I care about I won't want him wounded. I will want him dead. Very.

"Are you sure you don't already?" Quistis snickered.

"I won't be able to get information out of him if he's dead." Squall flung back. "My job supersedes my own feelings. It's Swift I'm worried about. You didn't see what he did to the SeeD's. Try not to let anyone know I said this but I've _never_ seen anyone fight like he did. Not Zell. Not even Dante or Mika."

"So what are you saying?" Quistis asked noticing Squall's uneasy expression and posture.

"Look at me like I'm wearing a bunny suit because that's how stupid I feel saying this." The Commander continued dully with a face like thunder. "I don't think we're dealing with a normal vampire. I think it's time we brought Cid into this."

* * *

Dante, Mika and Swift all decided some alone time was needed the blow off some steam after the attack by Balamb Garden. Mika went off to work out, by which he meant killing every monster he could find. Swift stayed in his hotel room and brainstormed on ways to "deal" with a sociopathic mass murderer of Alexander's calibre. Dante meanwhile had decided to go out to a bar and get completely plastered. He was sitting at the bar and staring murderously into his whiskey glass when he picked up on a familiar vibe. He looked over to see Quistis sliding into the chair next to him.

"Drinking alone?" She asked, sounding as if she genuinely gave a damn. "That's never a good sign."

"So they tell me." Dante replied caustically, giving her a half mocking, half appreciative once over. "If I buy you a drink, neither of us has that problem anymore."

"Vodka tonic." Quistis said before starting to sound Dante out. "I was hoping to run into you actually. I wanted to apologise for what happened yesterday. I had no idea Squall was planning something like that."

"Well the way I hear it epic failures aren't his forte." Dante fired back. "So how could you? Now why don't you tell me what exactly you're doing here?"

"Maybe I'm lonely." Quistis suggested. "I'm looking for some conversation and you're a handy source even if you are a bloodsucking creature of the night. Is that so hard to believe."

"Ordinarily no," Dante shrugged. "But I doubt you'd come out dressed to kill because you're lonely and hungry for conversation. Speaking as a bloodsucking creature of the night with a master's degree in creaturing, I'd say you're on the prowl."

"Then you clearly don't know me very well." Quistis jabbed, though inwardly she was impressed at his deduction. "It's kind of sad how you can't have a drink with someone without suspecting some ulterior motive."

"Tell me Quistis; are you familiar with the concept of karma?" Dante asked. "What goes around comes around and so forth? Good things don't happen to me. You see, new vampires need some time to get a hold of themselves and manage their urges, especially the urges revolving around the ruby red. It's not unknown for new vampires to kill people because they can't control themselves. I killed a good few people and so did Mika. Mika just abstained from warm human blood altogether. Even now he just feeds from animals or blood bags. I however learnt to manage it but every now and then I fall off the wagon and kill my victims. That's just one of the main reasons that in the eyes of the karmic cycle I don't deserve to have good things happen to me."

"And whose fault is that?" Quistis pressed. "You didn't ask to become a vampire. Swift turned you against your will."

"Yeah that's true." Dante drained his glass and motioned to the bartender to refill it. "So?"

"So now you're working with the man that turned who I guess was a fairly nice, well-adjusted guy into a vampire?" Quistis snorted. "That's a bright idea."

"I don't enjoy working with him." Dante growled. "Sometimes I'm surprised I've even allowed myself to do so, but Swift is my ticket to Alexander and total revenge as well as a mountain of closure thrown in for good measure."

"Alexander is Swift's brother." Quistis said. "You may not think I understand the bond of family but I do. How can you be sure that he's on the level?"

"Swift is, relatively speaking an honourable man." Dante said though it looked as if the words caused him extreme physical pain. "He's trustworthy, but he's also extremely focused and driven. Anyone who stands in his way…he'll kill them without hesitation. I personally don't trust him, but that isn't saying a lot because I don't trust anyone. Anyway, you talk about the bond of family. That's what's driving Swift. I don't know all the facts but Alexander hunted down and killed Swift's remaining family. Swift is after revenge as well."

"But he turned you into a vampire." Quistis pointed out. "You don't know his motives and what he's willing to do for revenge, who he's willing to sacrifice or even if he'll get it done. Dante, if you want to get revenge on Alexander, Balamb Garden has the resources to help you do it."

"I'm not stupid Quistis, so please don't treat me like it." Dante said warningly. "If I was to accept Balamb Garden's help they'd want something in return. If I know Squall Leonhart and it's one of my burdens in life that I do it'll be something I don't want to give."

"Everything you know." Quistis decided to cut to the chase then and there. "For starters."

"Oh is that all?" Dante snorted. "Listen up. We're not best pals anymore, so I'm not telling you what Alexander did to me and that is that."

"Fine," Quistis conceded, privately thinking torture would be needed pretty soon. "I'll settle for a little vampire information. When you look them up you get a world of fiction. What's the reality?"

"I can tell you anything you want to know." Dante took a drink before locking that mesmerizing gaze of his on her. "Fire away."

"Okay, what about the whole mirror thing?" Quistis asked him casting a look at the reflective top of the bar in which a dull reflection of Dante was visible.

"Myth." Dante replied. "As for holy water, it's drinkable, Garlic is edible and crucifixes are decorative."

"Okay and sunlight's not an issue either?" Quistis asked fighting to control her rising temper at Dante's aggressive mood.

"To most vampires UV light, even the artificial stuff your mates used at the hotel is lethal." Dante answered. "Mika and I picked up a couple of curious items on the black market shortly after Swift turned us." He indicated a silver band on the third finger of his right hand. "These rings protect us."

"Is that even possible?" Quistis asked.

"I don't know how the con that sold us them got a hold of them," Dante shrugged. "But they certainly work. Now you're wondering how to kill vampires. I'll tell you."

"You're very sure of yourself, telling me how I could kill you." Quistis observed dryly.

"Quistis," Dante laughed. "If I thought you were going to kill me I wouldn't be as civil as I am being. Just know that I could tear your head off one handed before the SeeD guys at that table over there could do anything to stop me. Now then, killing vampires is difficult but we're not indestructible. You've probably guessed that stakes work. They have to be predominantly wood. Wood is favoured because it's tough and easy to get your hands on but your average vampire hunter coats the tip with metal for extra penetration. Vampire sternums are pretty tough, so most people prefer to jam a stake up under the ribcage."

"Okay. Are there any other methods?" Quistis asked.

"Bullets do work but they can be unreliable." Dante continued. "What you want are explosive or incendiary rounds. Large calibre weapons that can blow off or totally destroy the head work, and that leads us into decapitation. If you've got a good aim and are skilled with a sword or axe you've got a decent chance. In my experience fire and explosives are good and reliable tools. Then there's other more unconventional methods like falling, heavy objects. After all, it always works for that creepy carton rabbit when you're running from that nice man with the speech impediment."

"You've got to tell me more." Quistis exclaimed as Dante slid off his stool. "I've got to know."

"No I don't." Dante replied. "I've already said enough, but not everything. Meet me here same time on the second of January and come alone. Then I'll tell you more. Until then…the shop is closed."

* * *

Squall at this moment was entertaining a visitor. He was a tall muscular, black man with a shaved head, watchful grey eyes and the posture of a soldier. He was dressed in a dark green polo neck jersey, a black leather jacket and brown slacks. He was shown into Squall's office and shook Squall's hand.

"Steven Knight I presume." Squall smiled as he motioned the man to take a seat. "I've heard a great deal about you."

"Cid Kramer called me." Steven Knight smiled tightly. "He didn't say much but I got the impression you've got a problem with some vampires. I'm guessing you want me to take care of that problem for you."

"Can you do it?" Squall asked him, decided to skip the formalities and proceed right to the point.

"When I find these vampires, there is no measure to how fast and how hard I can bring these monsters down." Steven replied. "I've been killing vampires since I was sixteen years old."

"I think you ought to know we have evidence that our primary target is more than just your simple vampire." Squall replied. "He's faster, stronger and smarter than your run of the mill bloodsuckers so…"

"He's a vampire, no further." Steven cut across him. "As for my fee, you can keep it. All I want for my services is the opportunity to kill any more vampires you come across. They're animals Commander. They've got no place in this world and they need to realise that. I'm the memo."

"Well we have accommodation prepared for you." Squall said. "We also have a state of the art armoury that I think you'll find is equipped for your every need."

"I don't need accommodation or an armoury." Steven said with a hint of steel in both his voice and eyes. "All I need from you is free range of the island and permission to do what needs to be done."

"Can you promise me irrevocably no innocent people are going to get hurt?" Squall asked uneasily. Cid had described this guy as a single minded vampire hunter, utterly devoted to killing them. It was fairly obvious Steven hated vampires more than anything and while hatred was a powerful fuel it frequently led to large amounts of collateral damage.

"You don't need to worry Commander, I'm in control." Steven said, as if reading Squall's minds. "The only people that will get hurt are the vampires and people that get in my way. All you need to do is just leave me to my own devices."

"Very well." Squall pulled a manila folder out of his desk and handed it over. "We're dealing with three vampires, named Dante Skyle, Mika Skyle and Swift Obsidian. This is everything we've got on them."

"I see." Steven nodded approvingly. "The one who you say is not a normal vampire? Which one is he?"

"Swift Obsidian." Squall answered. "Please don't take this the wrong way but all three are extremely dangerous. I really hope you know what you're doing. They'll kill you instantly and without remorse if you give them half a chance."

"No they won't." Steven smiled tightly. "I've studied, hunted and killed these creatures for the entirety of my adult life. I know them better than any human and I can kill more, and faster than anyone you've got. If the name Van Helsing is about to pass through your lips I suggest you start running. These vampires may think they're untouchable. They haven't met Steven Knight yet. Good day Commander."

"Good day Mr Knight." Squall replied as Steven spun around and headed out of the office. Squall grimaced. He almost felt sorry for Swift and the Skyle brothers, though he suspected it wouldn't be quite as easy to destroy them and Steven had made it seem. Then there was a niggling feeling that Steven's methods, while conveniently ambiguous weren't going to be very inconspicuous.

* * *

**Author Commentary: I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and you can take this as my belated present to you all. I hope to bring out the next chapter before New Year but I'm not sure if I'll manage it. If I do, then yay me but I doubt it. This chapter was built around Quistis' and Dante's conversation in the bar as I felt I should add my loose change to the whole mythology surrounding vampires. As for the daylight rings I am well aware the Salvatore brothers in the Vampire Diaries have them. If you want the truth that's exactly where I stole them form and it provides me with another parallel between the Damon Salvatore and Dante Skyle as well as Stefan Salvatore and Mika Skyle. Don't worry though, when Mika eventually gets a girlfriend Dante isn't going to go after her. He'll simply question the girl's sanity at every available opportunity. As for Selphie's pregnancy, I wonder how many people are surprised by it. I know I did the exact same thing to her in the Balamb Chronicles but again she was the only practical choice. Quistis couldn't get pregnant because she's only had sex with Dante recently (vampires can't procreate in my mind) and as for Rinoa, I cannot bring myself to subject an innocent child to the almighty storm that heading for her. As for the next chapter, you'll see Steven Knight, the friendly neighbourhood vampire slayer in action. If you think a brought him in simply to get himself ripped apart thing again. You think Foxton was nasty? Next to Steven, Foxton is the angel Gabriel. Once again I'd like to thank my readers and reviewers, especially Dee and Bebedora. A special shout out goes to Bobby Corwen. Thanks for your message my friend and I hope I get a review from you sometime in the future on either one of my works (or both). Thank you one and all for your continuing support. I hope you continue to enjoy the festive season and have a Happy New Year.**

**~Ally Todd**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen: Happy New Year**

Steven's main base of operations was a camper van he'd parked just inside the treeline of one of the forests on the Alcauld Plains. It was a pretty basic space but it served his purposes. The back was dominated by a large work bench, beneath which was a sleeping bag. Steven's tenure with the Dragon Squadron had taught him how to survive on pretty much anything he could find. He was currently sitting at the work bench. A Desert Eagle was lying partially disassembled on the bench but the most noticeable items were a long line of what looked like .357 bullet's fashioned from wood. He was carving them skilfully but with the same level of love and care a mother would reserve for a new born baby. He'd always been taught to respect his kit. Steven smiled as he finished yet another wooden bullet. He was about to start carving one when a noise reached his ears.

It was the sound of feet crunching through the snow and dead leaves that blanketed the ground at this time of year. By the sound of things they were heading straight for the camper van. Steven slid off his stool and taking care not to be seen peered out the window. A young woman wearing a rucksack, hiking boots and carrying a trekking pole was headed straight for him. Steven was not unduly worried. In fact he shook his head and laughed quietly to himself. It was time to take a page from the Steven Knight playbook. The last time he'd tried this, it had led to the second largest body count of his vampire killing career. He grabbed a few logs from next to the stove in one arm and grabbed a long handled axe in the other before kicking the door open and dumping the logs on the ground. He lined up one and then spun, holding the axe high as the hiker rounded the camper van.

"Whoa!" She exclaimed, dropping her trekking pole. "Take it easy. I didn't mean to startle you."

"Sorry," Steven said neutrally as he lowered the axe. "You just surprised me is all. I didn't sleep well."

"Well no offense but did you consider that it may have something to do with the fact that you're sleeping in a camper van." The hiker replied before laughing. "I need a bed or a tent personally speaking. I've never been able to sleep in something with four wheels. It's a funny story."

"I've got time." Steven said as he set one of the logs upright and used it as a stool. He attempted a friendly smile. "I'm Steven."

"Lorna," The hiker replied, shaking his hand. "I think I can't sleep in wheeled vehicles because I had this friend, not me, who was having sex in an Audi parked at the top of a hill, and she kicked the gearshift…I think you can guess what happened."

"You're kidding." Steven snorted before laughing. "Who knew? I don't think anyone would try that in my wheels. The place is a right mess. Any prospective bed fellow would run a mile."

"I could have a crack at it." Lorna offered coyly. "Maybe it just needs a woman's touch."

"Maybe." Steven said before looking over Lorna's shoulder. He allowed his mouth to fall open. "What the hell is that?"

"What?" Lorna said turning around to look. Steven immediately yanked out his high velocity tranquiliser pistol and shot Lorna three times in the back, the modified darts easily penetrating the thick hiking clothing. Steven dragged her into the van and expertly tied her hands and feet together.

"Sorry Lorna," He said to the unconscious form. "I guess it was just my imagination."

* * *

The Christmas celebrations had been effectively one upped by Selphie and Irvine's good news, and that had led to the magnitude of the aforementioned celebrations doubling. When Selphie and Rinoa had told Irvine he was going to be a father he'd been performing maintenance on a Minimi light machine gun. He'd emptied a one hundred round box magazine in the air (very nearly bringing the armoury roof in) and immediately told Selphie that he'd handle all the celebrations. Selphie had to admit that he'd done a pretty good job with a firework display of epic proportions, utilising enough gun powder to start a war.

Predictably Squall was not happy about the pregnancy and had immediately started pushing for a termination until Zell, Quistis, Selphie, Rinoa and Irvine (in that order) had told him it wasn't going to happen. He was reduced to simply muttering and glowering when he hadn't locked himself in his office, working on alternative plans of dealing with the vampires in case Steven failed. Aside from Squall and Cid no one knew about Steven. Squall would usually have told Quistis but he knew that there was a possibility, however remote that the blonde Blue Mage still had some residual feelings for one of Steven's targets.

"You wanted to see me Squall?" Cid asked as he entered Squall's office on the morning of New Years Eve.

"Yes I did." Squall gestured to a chair. "Take a seat. I wanted to talk to you about the vampire hunter you called in, Steven Knight."

"I guessed you might want to discuss him." Cid nodded knowingly. "I understand that he seems a bit abrasive and hatred fuelled but he means no harm. His people skills leave a lot to be desired but when it comes to killing vampires he's the best in the world."

"I don't doubt his methods provide results," Squall grunted. "But there's something a little off about him. I guess I want to know; can we trust him?"

"I think so." Cid nodded. "He's not a bad man. He's highly motivated, completely ruthless but extremely strong willed and a vampire hunter to the core. He knows how vampires think and he can always second guess them, even someone as unpredictable as Swift, or as unconventional as Dante."

"I guess we'll have to trust him then." Squall muttered. "I'm going to keep an eye on him though. You know he didn't want money for this job. I got the impression all he cares about is getting a hold of vampires that he can take apart piece by piece."

"Is that a particularly bad thing?" Cid reasoned. "We need someone to take these guys out and if anyone can do it, it'll be Steven."

Squall sighed and kneaded his forehead. Cid was right. Sometimes in order to get things done you had to join forces with those you'd rather avoid. The field exam was a monumental case in point. During the battles with the Galbadian forces Seifer had saved Zell and Squall's lives as much as they'd saved his. There was definitely something wrong about Steven but if he was the answer to taking out Swift, Dante and Mika then Squall would happily tolerate him. Still, tonight was not the time. There was a street party being held in Balamb's city centre and most of the Garden had opted to attend, only the hardcore of SeeD members staying behind. Squall had been all for joining them until Rinoa had pointed out that Xu was staying behind, therefore allowing Squall to go and have some much needed fun.

"Do you think we ought to tell Quistis about Steven?" Squall asked. "She does have clearance to know."

"Why haven't you told her yet?" Cid enquired.

"I think it's fair to say that when Steven get's his hands on Dante he'll kill him and I don't think he'll do it with kindness." Squall explained. "Quistis and Dante had a pretty intense relationship and who knows if there are some residual feelings there?"

"Good point," Cid nodded knowingly. "I think we should maybe hold off for a few days. Quistis has got the whole rigid mental control thing going."

"Maybe but just because she doesn't admit to having these feelings that doesn't mean she doesn't." Squall protested. "She's human after all."

"And Dante isn't." Cid smiled. "There should be a book. I think you should just use your discretion."

_Typical Cid!_ Squall thought bitterly. Not for the first time Squall found himself pining for the days when he hadn't outranked Cid. Sometimes he wasn't convinced he possessed the leadership skills Cid had seen in him when he'd appointed him Commander.

* * *

During his career as a vampire hunter Steven had honed his ability to spot vampires to a near supernatural level, and he wouldn't have needed the mug shot of Mika Skyle he had to identify him. He was sitting in his camper van opposite the Balamb Hotel as Mika walked in. Steven watched him carefully as he loaded his Desert Eagle with wooden bullets and slid it into his belt. He slid a hand into his jacket and gave the stake strapped to the inside of his right arm a reassuring squeeze. Usually, given the reputation for extreme violence all three targets had Steven would take them out from afar, preferably with a sniper rifle or long range crossbow, but that wasn't the point. The point was too make an impression. He looked into the bank, where Lorna was still lying on the floor out for the count. Steven climbed out of the camper van and locked it before crossing the street to the hotel.

"Hello, I'd like to book a room for tonight." He said pleasantly.

"You're here for the street party right?" The receptionist guessed. "New Year's Eve is always good for business."

Steven nodded but didn't pass comment. A street party was a highly interesting prospect. Alcohol and lots of warm bodies drew vampires in like moths to a flame. This could be an interesting day indeed. A movement caught Steven's eye and he saw the other vampire brother Dante stand up in the corner and head towards the lift. Steven was given his room key and he ended up riding the lift up with the vampire. He was able to study him up close. He wasn't very muscular but he had clearly been in his fair share of scraps. Steven decided to let him go unmolested for now at least. They both got out on the same floor but Steven's room was at the far end of the corridor. He waited for the vampire to go into his room before doubling back and knocking on the door. It was Mika who opened the door.

"Mika Skyle?" Steven asked with a swift smile. "I have a message for you from Squall Leonhart."

"Is that a fact?" Mika enquired sceptically as he raised an eyebrow. "What is it today? More death threats?"

Steven didn't reply, not verbally at least. His arm snapped up and a spray mechanism strapped to his wrist launched a huge mist of blood in Mika's face. He stumbled back, clawing at his face. His face shifted to its demonic visage and that was enough for Steven who wrenched out his Desert Eagle and shot Mika four times in the stomach, throwing him off his feet. Steven walked into the room and stepped over the bleeding vampire to see his brother emerge from the bathroom. He raised his gun.

"Not that I don't appreciate the sentiment behind shooting my brother from time to time," He said calmly. "But that was a bad move."

Steven responded by pulling the trigger twice but Dante was already moving. The first wooden bullet just brushed the side of his neck, cutting a shallow but arrow straight line across it. The second missed him altogether. Steven switched his aim but Dante was too quick. In less than a second he cleared the bed in a single leap, landed next to Steven and punched the hunter hard in the temple. The blow threw Steven against the wall and stunned him but Steven hadn't become one of the best vampire hunters in the world by being taken down that easily. He backed off before planting his two remaining bullets in Dante's chest. Dante was thrown backwards onto the bed where he writhed in agony. Steven wiped his brow and calmly loaded another magazine of wooden bullets.

"Whoever the hell you are," Dante gritted out. "I swear to god, you're going to regret this."

"Did I ask you to speak?" Steven shot Dante in the thigh. "It's a heady tonic, holding one's life in the palm of your hand. Holding two vampires lives in the palm of your hand though. That's even better."

"Tell me something Van Helsing." Mika spoke up as he dragged himself into a sitting position. "Did Squall tell you exactly how many vampires you're dealing with?"

"The answer being of course you're dealing with three of them." Swift said as he walked in and took in the scene immediately.

"You'd be Swift Obsidian wouldn't you?" Steven said brightly a she cocked the Desert Eagle. "Come in slowly, close the door and don't try anything stupid."

"I don't do stupid things." Swift said simply as he complied. "Before _you_ do something stupid I should tell you something. You're not really dealing with three vampires. You're dealing with two. I however am what you might call a super vampire."

"That's good. Twice the pride, double the fall." Steven laughed. "I'm sure you have heard the phrase the bigger they come…"

"The faster they stomp you into nothing." Dante completed from the bed. "Whoever you are, you cannot beat Swift. If you cut and run now, you'll live."

"Thank you for your advice and I don't remember asking." Steven replied before shooting Dante in the other thigh. It was at that point Swift struck. He dashed forwards but there was surprise in store. Steven stopped him abruptly by kicking him in the stomach and shooting him in the chest from point blank range. Swift's eyes bulged and his mouth popped wide open. He swayed slightly until Steven pressed the muzzle of his gun to the middle of Swift's forehead and pulled the trigger. Had he been a regular vampire the shot would've decapitated him but Swift simply keeled over backwards and hit the floor with a heart stopping crash.

"Oh bollocks." Was Dante's analysis of the situation.

"You'll be making a grave mistake if you kill Swift." Mika told Steven, most likely playing for time. "You see, Swift has a brother and I doubt he'd be dancing a jig if someone else killed him. Believe me when I tell you this; Alexander Obsidian is the last person in the world you want angry with you."

"Okay so what do you suggest as an alternative?" Steven asked as he pulled out his stake.

"Let us go and we won't destroy you piece by piece." Dante growled. "We might even torture you. With transfusions we could keep you alive for entertainment indefinitely. I do have some expertise in that area."

"You really don't help yourself do you." Steven returned not taking his eyes of Mika as he readied his stake. "I think I'll kill your brother first. Do you have anything to say about that?"

"Funny you should ask." Dante said as he grabbed Steven by the throat from behind. "I will give you some advice. Next time you try to kill vampires, make sure they're not wearing full body armour." Steven had just enough time to notice the blood pouring from Dante's thighs but the lack of blood pouring from his chest wounds before Dante threw him headfirst through the open window. "I am going to kill Squall."

* * *

It was just after nine in the evening and the New Year's Party was well underway. Most of Balamb Garden had turned up, as had Steven and the three vampires. Mika and Swift were keeping an eye out for the hunter. Swift's pride had been seriously dented so he had no qualms about letting Dante track down Squall and rip him apart. Dante had located the Commander practically from the moment he entered the town and was now standing less than ten metres away, watching him through slightly narrowed eyes. He waited for a gap in the crowd before coming up behind Squall and giving him a hefty shove in the back.

"Hey watch it!" Squall exclaimed as he righted himself and spun around. "Oh it's you. I must confess I wasn't expecting to see you here. Or anywhere for that matter."

"So you admit you hired a gun toting psychopath to kill my brother, Swift and I?" Dante demanded, shoving Squall again.

"Guilty as charged." Squall replied. "You've been a thorn in my side for far too long and I think it's high time you and your crackpot theories were put to bed, permanently. I would also advise against shoving me again."

"Or what?" Dante fired back as he shoved Squall a third time. "You're the big, bad SeeD commander. Do something about it. Advice? Don't piss off a super strong vampire. I initially came to you in friendship and all you've done is whine about it. Come on Squall, get things off your chest."

"You want to know what my problem is." Squall demanded. "At the moment…you. You neglected to mention your genus until you had no other option. I don't like it when people hold back on me."

"And your attitude is exactly why I held back." Dante growled. "You know I don't see us settling this through reasoned discussion." He smiled before drawing back a fist and letting Squall have it in the face. The commander stumbled back before an uppercut knocked him off his feet. Dante was about to lay into Squall when Irvine intervened, grabbing Dante around the waist and dragging him backwards. Irvine was an excellent SeeD member, he could hit a moving target from nearly any distance with any weapon you cared to name but his unarmed skills were sadly lacking. Dante freed himself before smashing an elbow into Irvine's temple. The sharpshooter collapsed sideways seeing stars. He had however provided enough of a distraction for Squall to get to his feet and punch Dante in the face. Dante's face shifted to his demonic visage and he lunged forwards with a roar. He hit Squall twice in the face, before grabbing him by the lapels and tugging him forwards, head butting him in the face.

"Dante!" Quistis exclaimed from nearby as the vampire kicked Squall in the chest. "Stop it!"

Dante had never been one to listen to reason and he was definitely exhibiting that particular shortcoming now. He shrugged off a couple of retaliatory punches from Squall and punched him square in the face before throwing him to the floor. He straddled the commander (kicking Zell into the crowd as he went) and proceeded to knock seven bells out of him. Squall put up hands to shield his face but Dante's fists effortlessly penetrated his defences. Dante eventually backed off and spat contemptuously on a semi-conscious bloodied Squall.

"That's just a taster." He snarled as his face shifted back to his human guise. "Next time, I swear to god I _will _kill you."

"Dante!" Quistis yelled as Dante forced his way through the crowd. "What the hell was that all about?"

"Do you know what happened to Swift, Mika and I today?" Dante raged. "We were shot, repeatedly by a psychotic vampire hunter that Squall hired to go after us. I don't take kindly to that. Tell Squall, that if he wants to remain in this world to call him off. Otherwise, I will kill both of them."

"Can you see where Squall was coming from though?" Quistis reasoned. "You must understand…"

"That people have certain misconceptions about vampires?" Dante completed angrily. "I get that but we have as much right to life as anyone else. If Squall hires someone to kill us he makes himself a legitimate target."

"What about your human victims?" Quistis demanded. "I find it hard to believe people just walk up to you and tap a vein."

"I'm not going to deny I've killed people." Dante retorted. "But there's more to it to that. If your boss stops trying to kill me then I might explain but until that time, you're my enemy as much as he is. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a vampire hunter to eviscerate."

"Moron." Quistis muttered before heading back to check on Squall.

Swift and Dante reconvened near the train station, using the noise of crowd to talk without fear of being overheard. Swift rolled his eyes at the blood spatter on Dante's face and his scarlet hands.

"What did you do to Squall?" Swift enquired offhandedly.

"I didn't kill him much as I wanted to." Dante explained. "I certainly gave him cause to think twice before picking a fight with us again. I'm going to guess you haven't heard from our vampire hunter friend."

"Not a peep." Swift nodded. "That's pretty weird if you ask me. This guy didn't strike me as low profile. I don't suppose you'd like to help Mika and I look."

"I suppose I can spare my time but only if you let me feed him his own tongue." Dante grunted darkly. "Where is Mika anyway?"

"He's currently searching the other side of this street." Swift before noticing the subtle change on Dante's face. "What?"

"You say he was searching the other side of this street?" Dante echoed brightly. "Not any more that's for sure. I can't smell him, and I can't see him either. That's not a good sign."

"Come on he can handle himself." Swift said dismissively. "You're worrying over nothing."

"Maybe I am but maybe not." Dante pulled out his phone and dialled Mika. He listened before grimacing. "No answer."

"Wait a second." Swift crossed the street with Dante and headed for an alley. "Okay call again." This time the ringtone on Mika's phone was quite audible. Swift quickly located it.

"You're not going to like what I'm thinking." Dante said as he took it.

* * *

When Mika regained consciousness it took him a few minutes to ascertain his whereabouts. Judging by the numerous vehicles and graffiti stained walls he was in an underground car park. He could smell the sea so he was probably pretty near the harbour. He clambered to his feet and put out a hand to steady himself. Before he could look for an exit several rough looking men emerged from cars, carrying an assortment of knives and bats. Most of the tips of the bats were sharpened to lethal points. There were also two Rottweiler's on chains. Mika was fairly sure who was behind this and he was proved right as Steven appeared.

"Hello Mika," He said, spinning his pistol in his hand. "I was hoping to run into you so I could wish you a happy new year."

"Right back at you." Mika was pretty sure things had taken a bad turn but he wasn't about to jump through hoops for a nutcase. "Funny how you had to get your pals to come in to kill me. What's the problem?"

"Maybe it was a tad ambitious to take all three of you on by myself." Steven nodded as if Mika had made a fair point. "I don't really care whether you think me a coward or not. You're a vampire and if I don't make it my mission in life to do everything in my power to kill you, I'm not a hunter. I'm just nothing."

"You're not nothing. At least not yet." Mika growled. "You soon will be. When it comes to Swift you have no idea what you're dealing with. He's not going to let you shoot him again and it's my main regret in life that I'm not going to see him rip your head off one handed."

"Well at least you've accepted the inevitability of your fate." Steven observed. "For now, however I have a few questions to ask you. How do you walk around in daylight?"

"You'd be surprised at how effective industrial amounts of factor thirty can be." Mika grinned manically. Steven nodded and one of the men cracked Mika around the head with his bat. Mika shook his head. "Okay, first thought, totally spontaneous off the top of my head…ow!"

"Go on make all the jokes you want." Steven replied. "That's all you can do. Your brother and Swift Obsidian have no idea where you are. When the bells ring I suggest you make peace with whatever deity you worship, because once the bells stop you'll be shaking hands with him."

* * *

**Author Commentary: What do you know I did manage to bang out another before New Year. Good on me. I've always wanted to end a chapter with a character in mortal peril and believe me, Steven isn't just your average villain of the week. I can get a massive amount of mileage out of the guy. He's ruthless and totally dedicated, not to mention devout in his belief that killing vampires is what he was born to do. He overpowered Swift so easily so you can rest assured he's a seriously tough nut to crack. If you're wondering whether he'll come up against the spawn of Satan that is Alexander then you may well be in luck but all bets are off where this guy is concerned. Dante's beating of Squall was designed to show that it's detrimental to Squall's general wellbeing to send vampires after him. Squall's teetering on the brink of a very, very dark place indeed and that will come into play very soon. Quistis' relationship with Dante will become what I like to call the "Stewart Pattinson Relationship" in the sense it goes on and off like a bloody light bulb. Rest assured, Quistis is not best pleased with Dante breaking Squall's nose. Once again thanks and hugs go out to my reviewers Dee and Bebedora and thanks as well to the readers who didn't review. I'm not really that bothered. If I get another chapter done before New Year's Day I'll be very surprised but anyway, happy New Year to all. Have a good one and don't drink too much. You have no idea how ironic it is for me to say that!**

**~Ally Todd**


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty: The Means to an End**

"Are you quite finished?" Mika spat a mouthful of blood out as he recovered from the latest beating. Until the bells rang Steven's henchmen had been keeping themselves occupied by periodically beating the living hell out of him. "Not that it wasn't fun, but your technique was a little ropey. Take these handcuffs off and I'll give you a lesson free of charge."

"How stupid do you think we are?" Steven enquired offhandedly. He was sitting astride his motorcycle and was seemingly content to watch rather than participate in the abuse. Mika was a tad disappointed because he knew that if Steven went anywhere near him no handcuffs on Earth would be able to stop him ripping the vampire hunters neck open.

"Do you really want me to answer that?" Mika grinned crookedly. "You're biblically stupid. I mean really, really seriously dense on a massive scale. You kill me and you'll have Dante to answer to. You kill Swift you'll have Alexander to answer to. You've made it your mission in life to kill vampires I'm on board with that but you couldn't have picked worse targets. You have no idea what you've gotten into and I were you I'd pack up and get running because now you've pissed him off there is no method of stopping Swift from tearing your neck out."

"Wow Mika, that was really pathetic." Steven laughed. "You must realise how fucked you are. Don't you think I know that? Do you think I don't live with a shadow over my head all day every day? I know my line of work is dangerous and I know that odds are sooner or later I'll get killed. It's just not today and it's certainly not by your cohorts. They don't know where you are and even if they do, they're totally outnumbered."

"The fact that you're saying that simply proves that you don't know them." Mika grinned before pouting outrageously. "I'm bored. Give me another beating."

"You heard him boys." Steven ordered. "Mika, I want to know if you're a screamer feel free."

They started out slow, toe poking him and slicing him across the torso with their knives but soon kicks, punches, stabs and blows with the bats were coming thick and fast. Every so often Steven would throw in a wooden bullet just to spice things up. Within minutes Mika was a quivering hunk of agony. Steven was lining up another shot when he heard someone clapping as a stylishly dressed man walked around a Jaguar.

"Don't let me interrupt." He said cheerfully. "Please continue with whatever it is you're doing."

"Don't come any closer." Steven warned cocking his gun ominously. "Who the hell are you?"

"Okay seeing as you ask my names Alexander." The man smiled. "What I want is for you to release Mika Skyle into my custody."

"You're _the_ Alexander Obsidian?" Steven asked incredulously.

"You're quick." Alexander noted blithely. "I can see why you're the leader here."

"I'm the leader because I'm the best vampire hunter in the world." Steven replied. "I think you ought to know that once I'm done with Swift and the brothers Skyle I may well decide to come after you. You're just another vampire to me."

"Just another vampire?" Alexander's face darkened. "I am an extraordinary vampire and you'd do extremely well to remember it. You're in a show me respect or die situation and don't think for one minute I can't kill you."

"You talk a big game don't you?" Steven clearly had very little idea how bad things had gotten. "You underestimate me."

"Whatever, that's unimportant." Alexander waved a hand airily. "Just give me Mika and I'll be on my way. You can pursue me but I'd advise against you because I'm not shy about killing everyone you've ever met. I assume some of you have wives, mothers, sisters or daughters. Screw with me and I'll make a point of raping every last one of them to death."

"Threatening us is really going to make us hand Mika over." Steven said. "Now why don't you go somewhere that's away."

"Don't feel like it really." Alexander said evenly. "Tell me who the camper van outside belongs to. I particularly liked the girl I found inside. Name of Lorna, hearty screamer. I like to call that meals on wheels."

"You're a funny man." Steven snarled sarcastically. "We're not going to give Mika to you so why are you still here?"

"If you want me to leave I'm afraid you'll have to make me." Alexander said it almost sadly but the challenge in his words was abundantly clear. Two of Steven's men advanced on Alexander, one carrying a sharpened baseball bat, the other wearing twin sets of brass knuckles. Alexander laughed as they closed in. His clenched fists shot out, smashing both men's skulls to smithereens with a single blow. Several of the men screamed in shock as the headless bodies toppled over. A thoroughly nauseated Mika averted his gaze and Steven's grin slipped right off his face.

"Release him." Steven said quietly pointing at Mika.

"Now let's not be too hasty." Alexander said brightly. "I just killed your monkey slaves as a demonstration of how serious I am. I don't really care whether you release Mika or not. Toodles." With that he spun on his heel and headed out of the car park.

"And you thought you were diabolical." Mika observed. "Tell me Steven, how does it feel to be well and truly one upped?"

* * *

"Are you alright Squall?" Rinoa asked concernedly as Squall sat on the rear of an ambulance. "That was quite a beating you took."

"The paramedics said my nose is broken." Squall grunted. "It's no problem. It'll take more than a self-obsessed, arrogant, bloodsucker to stop me doing what needs to be done."

"Oh honey I've been called worse." Dante said as he walked round the ambulance with a slightly sadistic smile on his face. His eyes lingered on Squall's battered visage. "I got you good didn't it?"

"Don't you think you've done enough?" Rinoa demanded aggressively getting in Dante's face. "You beat him to a pulp. You've done enough so just go away now and leave us alone."

"Oh I'd love to." Dante grinned. "However Mika has gone missing and I think your boyfriends little vampire hunter playmate is to blame. So Squall, tell me where he is and I promise on all that I hold dear that when the time comes I'll make it quick and relatively painless."

"There's a winning strategy." Squall bit off. "Even if I did know where he was do you think for one minute I'd tell you? You beat me to a pulp, so I guess your brother being killed is a fair trade. One less vampire in the world right?"

"I was hoping it wouldn't come with to this." Dante said before grabbing Squall by the throat and pinning him to the side of the ambulance. "Where is my brother and where is the hunter? I will kill you if you don't tell me!" He tightened his grip until Squall couldn't breathe too well.

"Dante stop it!" Rinoa cried before surging forwards and attempting to wrestle Dante off Squall. "You're killing him!"

"Good Lord so I am." Dante observed putting on a posh accent. "I'm killing him. Well come on Squall, give me a reason not to! Tell me where my brother is and I let you go. You're officially untouchable for about a day."

"Dante stop it!" Rinoa yelled grabbing him from behind. Before she could drag him away with her Sorceress powers Swift appeared next to her and forced an ornate silver bracelet onto her wrist. It was like a switch being flipped. The bracelet was obviously of the magical dampening Odine brand.

"You don't want to do that." Swift told her. "You and Mika bonded when he saved your life in Esthar, even if you don't want to admit it. If you hinder us getting his location and he dies, ask yourself; can you live with that?"

"We bonded before I found out he was a monster." Rinoa replied as she tried in vain to pull the bracelet off. "Now, I couldn't care less."

"Come on Rinoa," Swift laughed bitterly. "Vampires are seriously misunderstood creatures. Mika doesn't drink human blood, at least not from the vein. He feeds off animals, or robs blood banks to stay alive. He isn't as strong as other vampires who drink fresh blood. He doesn't deserve death like Dante, or even me."

"Well that's all very nice but I don't know where Steven's keeping Mika." Squall gritted out while Dante released his hold. "He'll be dead well before you get to him."

"Hold her!" Swift ordered, pushing Rinoa into Dante's grip before he stepped forwards and observed Squall who was holding his throat. "If you wanted to contain a vampire where would you take him?"

"I'm not going to help you save an animal like Mika." Squall told him. "Forget it. Good bye, see you later." Swift scanned Squall's face before dropping him to the floor with a hard right hook.

"What about now?" He asked, his jaw tightening with anger. "Your stubbornness will be the death of you, you know." He turned to Dante. "He doesn't know anything."

"Maybe," Dante shoved Rinoa casually aside before stepping forward and fixing Squall with an uncomfortably intense gaze as the Commander got to his feet. "Maybe not." Before anyone could stop him Dante whipped out a knife and drove it into Squall's left bicep.

"What are you doing Dante?" Swift exclaimed belligerently. He was not usually bothered by squeezing answers out of people with methods other than asking nicely but as far as he was concerned this was beyond the pale.

"Shut up!" Dante roared back before turning to Squall. "You know Balamb as well as most right? So if you wanted to contain a vampire on these streets where would you take them? I know you're trained to resist torture but that's torture by other humans. You won't be able to handle torture by vampires so I suggest you tell us what you know."

"Alright," Squall said in what was an understandably agonised voice. "There's an underground car park near the harbour. It's really secure and there's only one entrance. It's far enough from the streets and the cameras are out of order."

"Good." Dante smiled as he dragged the knife from Squall's arm and returned it to his sheath before walking off. Swift attempted an apologetic glance at Rinoa and Squall before following.

"Have you completely lost your mind?" Swift demanded from behind Dante.

"I avoided the main veins and arteries, he'll probably live." Dante replied. "With any luck the wound might go septic. We can but hope though if you want to throw in praying be my guest."

"Is that supposed to make it alright?" Swift caught Dante by the arm and spun him around. "That was over the line, even for you."

"I did what I had to do." Dante growled pulling his arm out of Swift's grip. "I did what you couldn't."

"I hit him!" Swift protested.

"You think that's new to him?" Dante snorted. "I don't like to torture humans but needs must sometimes. It's a means to an end. You might want to remember that."

"You crossed the line back there." Swift continued stubbornly. "There was no need for that."

"Oh so you have a problem with a little torture every now and then?" Dante growled eyeballing Swift. "I seem to remember a time when you rather enjoyed it. I remember what you did to me."

"It was Alexander who tortured you, not me." Swift replied, despite the fact he was pretty sure where Dante was going with this.

"I'm not talking about what Alexander did to me." Dante snarled. "After you turned me, you wanted to keep me in line. I remember the broken glass, the shallow cuts so that I'd remain conscious. You've got absolutely no room to talk here. Squall was trying to stop me from saving my brother. He tries that again and no power on the planet will be able to stop me from ripping him to shreds. Not even you."

Swift shook his head and followed Dante towards the harbour. Something was beginning to play on the other vampires mind and Swift didn't like it at all. He also felt a great swell of pity for Steven if Dante got to him first. Swift would be perfectly happy to just grab Steven and kill him but if Dante got a hold of him…Swift wasn't entirely sure what would happen but he knew it wouldn't be a day at the spa for the vampire hunter.

Swift and Dante were both so preoccupied with rescuing Mika and arguing about the rights and wrongs of Dante's "methods" neither of them noticed the figure following them on the rooftops.

* * *

Steven and his henchmen had gotten over Alexander's visit and his comprehensive execution of two of their number with surprising speed and had gone back to what was fast becoming their favourite pastime; thinking up and performing creative ways to torture Mika. As a vampire Mika could take enormous amounts of pain and he hadn't been too bothered until one bright spark had started stubbing out cigarettes on his bare flesh. Like most vampires Mika didn't like fire. He didn't like cigarettes either, probably because he'd spent a long time passively smoking Dante's.

"You know Mika," Steven said as he fired another wooden round into Mika's stomach. "I did initially bring you here to kill you, but this torture thing is so much more fun. There are five main torture groups; sharp, blunt, hot, cold and loud. Do you have any particular preference?"

"How about you take my restrains off and then we'll see how much fun torture really is." Mika growled.

"Nothing doing Mika." Steven laughed. "This is always a lot more fun with audience participation. May I take your order?

"No but you can take a sugar frosted fuck off the end of my dick!" Mika snarled. Compared to Dante Mika didn't have a particularly filthy turn of phrase most of the time but he did have his moments. If he was hoping to provoke Steven into killing him however he was in for a disappointment.

"That was rude." Steven said brightly as he reloaded his gun. "Tell me, what do you know about Alexander Obsidian?"

"About five foot ten and he just killed two of your monkey slaves." Mika grinned. "That's about the sum of my knowledge. If I were you I'd ask Dante or possibly Swift. They've met the guy."

"Suddenly this torture thing is getting boring." Steven sighed as he pulled out a stake. "I tell you what. I'll ask them and kill you, not necessarily in that order."

"Well get on with it then." Mika growled. "Kill me. Let's see you teeth. Figuratively speaking of course."

Steven grabbed Mika by the front of his shirt and pulled him up. He was raising his stake when there was a high pitched whistling. Something flashed in and Steven dropped his stake, no doubt thanks to the silver throwing star sticking out of his forearm. Dante stepped into the light, murder in his eyes.

"That's not very nice." He said as he walked forwards. "I've come to an epiphany Steven. I really don't like you. Let my brother go and you have my word that I'll kill you painlessly and quickly."

"Don't you think you're a bit outnumbered?" Steven said as his henchmen spread out and surrounded Dante. "I don't like your odds here."

"So you didn't come alone." Dante snorted. "Big deal. I know that I didn't. I brought the one and only Swift Obsidian with me, which means the fat lady, should be singing, right about now!" He smiled but nothing happened. Dante looked around and his smile slipped when he realised Swift was nowhere to be seen. "Wow this is awkward."

Swift was waiting outside. The general plan had been for Dante to wander in and make first contact while Swift held back before steaming in all guns blazing. Swift was about to come in when a hand was suddenly clamped over his mouth and another was locked around his throat. He was dragged up into the air and dumped on a rooftop. His attacker was standing over him his face in shadow.

"You're making a big mistake." Swift growled as his face morphed into his demonic visage. His assailant was not impressed to say the very least. He stepped into the light, showing his own vampire face.

"I was going to do something for the Skyle brothers." He said cheerfully. "Actually _to _the Skyle brothers but this is so much better." He exerted all his considerable strength and tossed Swift off the roof, before jumping down after him. "It's been a long time. No hug?"

"Alexander." Swift murmured, getting to his feet and eyeing his remaining sibling warily.

"Hello brother." Alexander grinned. "I see you're hanging around with the riff raff. The Skyle brothers? Seriously?"

"Well I don't know about Mika but Dante and I have a lot in common." Swift replied, keeping his temper in check remarkably well. "For starters we both kind of hate you and want to kill you."

"Well if history is any indicator what you want and what you're capable of are two very different things." Alexander pointed out lightly. "You could've killed me back in the day but you didn't take that chance. Who's for finding out why?"

Swift lunged forward. Empowered by rage he had the strength of a superhuman and the speed of lightning. He launched a fast and accurate flurry of blows but no matter how fast and strong he was Alexander had clearly not been letting himself go. He blocked and dodged every blow with incredible ease before retaliating. Swift was knocked backwards and floored in less than second. He jumped to his feet but Alexander was already moving. He leapt into the air and delivered a blindingly fast, incredibly powerful aerial spin kick to Swift's head. He repeated the move but Swift caught him by his ankle and catapulted him across the street. He hit the wall but managed to land more or less on his feet, dropping down onto one knee. Swift walked slowly towards him.

"Well it can't be that I couldn't kill you." He said in a soft deadly voice. "So something tells me we may need to explore other answers."

Alexander didn't reply. Instead he surged forward and nailed Swift with a savage double kick, first to the chest and then the face. As Swift stumbled back Alexander charged towards him and wrapped his legs around his brother's midriff before cracking him in the face with a right hander. Then he seized Swift's head and started to butt him repeatedly in the face. Swift attempted to throw Alexander off. Alexander however simply rolled backwards with his legs still tightly wrapped around Swift, resulting in Swift being pitched headfirst through a brick wall that smashed under the impact. Swift leapt up and hurled a brick at Alexander who dodged it easily before smiling arrogantly.

"What was that you said about not being able to kill me?" He stated loftily. "You're getting a bit of a belly on you Swift. You're not the guy you used to be. You need to watch your diet."

"And you need to watch your mouth," Swift retorted as he got back to his feet. "Before I fill it with my fist."

"That's a sharp argument you've got there." Alexander observed. "Did you practise it in the mirror beforehand?" He pulled out a revolver and twirled it before throwing it to Swift. "Go on then brother. I'm giving you an open invitation. Shoot me."

"It won't kill you." Swift said before firing, hitting Alexander in the neck. Alexander however barely noticed the shot and there was a noticeable lack of blood. Swift threw the gun back to Alexander. "Blanks? What game are you playing?"

"That's for me to know and you to dot, dot, dot." Alexander smiled before shooting Swift in the leg, being rewarded with a growl of pain. "Huh. Guess that one wasn't a blank. This is going to be fun." Swift could only watch as Alexander swept off down the street, his coat billowing. Swift sighed.

When he got to the underground car park both Mika and Dante were on the ground, both of them having taken quite a beating. Swift was still wired up after the fight with Alexander so he thundered towards the men like a locomotive.

"And there's target number three." Steven exclaimed jubilantly. His jubilation came to an abrupt end. Swift kicked the vampire hunter in the chest, hurling him across the car park to slam into the side of a transit van. He hit the ground and didn't move. Steven's henchman howled _en masse _and hurled themselves head on at Swift. With hindsight this was a seriously bad move. Two immediately had their chests punched out, before another was decapitated by a high kick. Numbers four, five and six were all killed by a single thunderbolt punch to their heads. The abrupt reappearance of his estranged sociopathic brother had a profound effect on Swift and Steven's henchmen were now suffering the consequences. One hurled himself at Swift knife held high.

"Bad move mate." Dante called as Swift seized the mans knife arm and twisted it until the knife slid into its owners gut. Swift dropped low, kicking another man's feet from under him before stomping his throat in. Then he pulled off an unusually flamboyant move, back flipping, both his feet catching the unfortunate target under the chin and sending his head flipping end over end across the car park. Swift continued on like a locomotive, lashing out with his blade like limbs, killing everyone he came into contact with. He crossed to Mika and ripped his handcuffs apart like they were made of paper, fully aware that a man was getting to his feet behind him. Swift lashed out with a back kick that launched the unfortunate man against a car but before he could finish him off Dante bounded past him and with an animalistic growl he tore into the mans throat. He paused before calling out to his brother.

"Get over here Mika!" He exulted. "This guy tastes great!"

Before Mika could reply their attention was diverted by the starting of a motorcycle engine. They all looked up to see Steven neck deep in what could be called a "tactical retreat". He was accelerating towards the exit. Dante loosed another throwing star but he'd sacrificed accuracy in the name of range. It ricocheted off the tail of the bike and ended up sticking out the front wing of a dark blue Porsche. Dante sighed regretfully as Swift wiped his hands clean while Mika massaged his wrists, trying to return the feeling.

"When I get my hands on that prick he'll wish he was never born." Mika grunted angrily before looking to Swift. "Good of you to show up. Why couldn't you do it a little earlier?"

"Major extenuating circumstances that's why." Swift said before filling the brothers in on his encounter with Alexander outside. "Alexander turning up has turned this into a whole new ball game."

"Yeah he came in here earlier." Mika pointed to the corpses of Alexander's two victims. "I figured he was just a guy with a few skills using the name, until…well until now."

"It's time you two got out of this." Swift said. "Feel free to deal with our vampire hunter mate in any way you see fit but when it comes to my beef with Alexander we're through okay?"

"No not okay!" Dante barked belligerently. "I don't like you, I don't suppose I ever will but we're in this together. I want revenge as much as you do so sorry but I am flatly refusing to get out of this."

"Then you're an idiot." Swift said evenly. "You don't seem to realise how serious this is. It gives me no pleasure to admit that Alexander kicked my ass. Do you think you can do any better? Because if you can I'd love to see you try. He will kill you and there is nothing you can do about it."

"Every man dies." Dante protested. "Not every man really lives and I can't do that with the shadow of Alexander over my head. We have to be together on this otherwise we haven't got a chance."

"I think Swift's point is we haven't got much of a chance anyway." Mika said quietly, staring at his brother.

"Well we try anyway." Dante said stubbornly. "I'm not backing down but if you're going to drop us then I'll have to go after Alexander myself."

"Then you're a fool." Swift stated casually. "I'm not trying to cut you out; I'm looking to save your lives. My main advice is get out of this and go about living your lives. If you continue with this vengeance crusade you'll just get yourselves killed."

"He's right Dante." Mika reasoned. "We can't handle this and you know it. We've been in this game far too long. It's time to get out."

"Forget it." Dante growled. "Alexander ruined my life and he will die for it. If I go with him, so be it."

* * *

**Author Commentary: Happy New Year to all who are reading this, and to the ancient Mayans and 2012 "doom mongers" I have to say fuck you. I'm sorry this took so long but I was busy getting very, very drunk and working on my upcoming original work. The timeline in the next chapter will jump ahead by about a month for reasons that will become abundantly clear, but Steven isn't going anywhere and neither is Dante. I have been looking forward to the tussle between Alexander and Swift ever since I started this fic but that's all it was; a tussle. Sooner or later they will get into a proper fight with each other, and you'll know all about it when it happens and it's not going to be fun for Swift, that's for sure. Everything I've given Swift to deal with in the last few chapters will seem like cake. As for Dante torturing Squall, while he complains almost constantly Dante does care for his brother and will do all in his power to protect him. It also adds yet another layer to Dante's steadily darkening character. Don't think too badly of him. You remember when he said he was in hell? Well, it didn't do his psychological makeup any good. Swift's reaction to Dante torturing Squall was shown to remind you all that even though he kills, maims and torments when he has to he is by and large a decent chap and he abhors those methods. The next chapter is special in two ways. We'll meet two original characters in supporting roles and we'll see a lot more of the inexorable magical powerhouse that is Rinoa. Until then, I hope you all have a very Happy New Year and thank you for your continuous support, Bebedora and Dee in particular. **

**~Ally Todd**

**P.S. If you go out to a nightclub anytime soon try telling people you have an improbable name. On New Years Eve I convinced a number of people (very drunk people albeit) that my name was Barnaby Josiah Macboon. It was great fun. **


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty One: The Field Exam**

Twelve of the latest SeeD candidates filed into the lecture theatre to be briefed on the final test before becoming SeeD's; the infamously arduous field exam where most of them experienced their first taste of real combat. All weapons had been polished and tested, magic had been refined and stocked and there was an air of barely controlled excitement lightly seasoned with anxiety. Squall waited for the chatter to die down before clearing his throat.

"The venue for today's Field Exam is District Nine in Esthar." He announced. "For those of you who don't know, District Nine is the deepest and most deprived area in the city. During the Lunar Cry four years ago the upper city took the brunt of the monster attack but a great deal made it down into District Nine where they started preying on the townsfolk."

"Esthar Special Forces have been making some limited progress in clearing them out but their resources are stretched to the limit." Quistis took over. "Most of the monsters are minor to moderate threats, from Red Bats to Wendigo's. Every so often one of the nastier specimens will show up. A four man Esthar Special Forces team came across a Hexadragon. One survived and he's in a mental asylum now, complete with straight-jacket howling his innards our day and night."

"That sounds like a barrel of laughs." Someone muttered under his breath across the room.

"Then we're telling it wrong." Squall bit off. "These monsters are dangerous but just because you're SeeD candidates it doesn't mean you're invincible. You will be backed up by qualified SeeD teams who will step in should you fail. My advice is when coming across a monster you're not sure you can handle, run like hell, or resort to extreme violence. You'll be divided into four, three member teams. Team captains will be Gates, Taggart, Stavros and Heartilly. Are there any questions?" There was silence.

"We'll be inserting into Esthar by the Ragnarok." Quistis nodded. "You'll also be backed up by Esthar Special Forces who'll be blocking the exits to stop the monsters escaping into other areas of the city. We're also being paid a quite substantial amount of money for this job so we want it done properly okay? You have two hours until we meet in the Parking Lot. Use the time to prepare properly."

Rinoa was particularly pleased with the members of her team; Zach Wallace and Mark Astonol. Both were black but given their well earned reputations no one had the stomach to give them any stick over it.

Mark was seven feet tall, built like a brick shithouse with buzz cut black hair biceps the size of basketballs. Despite his fearsome appearance you only needed a glance into his deep brown eyes to see that he was a gentle giant with a heart of gold until he was ready for a fight at which point he'd pulverize everything in his path with his weapon of choice; an enormous sledgehammer.

Zach was as small and slightly built as Mark was massive and muscular. He was however equally useful. Not only did he use the belts full of throwing stars draped across his torso he was generally considered the best martial artist Garden had produced since Zell Dincht. The joke around Balamb Garden was Zell was so obsessed with his protégés skill it wouldn't be long until he popped the question.

Rinoa decided to head back to her room and see if she could acquire some Forbidden Magic. Her natural skill with magic combined with her Sorceress powers gave the already potent magic an unnecessary but highly powerful kick and judging by what the field exam entailed she decided she might need it.

Rinoa still had two hours to kill before meeting up with her team in the Parking Lot and she'd done all she could, stocking us much magic as possible and refining her Blaster Edge to the ultimate Shooting Star model. Rinoa's thoughts wandered before coming the rest firmly on the subject of the vampires.

No one had seen hide nor hair of Swift, Dante or Mika since New Year and personally Rinoa didn't care especially after Dante's overzealous interrogation of Squall. Rinoa had also been satisfied when Squall admitted to hiring a professional vampire hunter to dispose of the vampires. Surprisingly enough Quistis was one of the main advocates of killing all three vampires.

Rinoa wouldn't admit it but she personally wasn't sure that Mika deserved a painful death. Dante was clearly far from sane, and very few tears would be shed over his body and Swift had killed several people recently, and removing him from the world would be a pretty good move. If Dante and Swift had any sense they would've left Balamb now.

* * *

Dante strolled nonchalantly towards Steven's camper van that was once more parked just inside the tree line. He was determined to finish the vampire hunter off before he could mix things up any more.

Of the three vampires Dante was the only one left in Balamb. Swift had left almost directly after the New Years Eve incident on his crazy kamikaze mission while Mika had vanished off the face of the Earth almost immediately after him. Dante however was totally opposed to letting Steven off with a warning. His main focus in life was grabbing the vampire hunter and tearing him apart, maybe sending him back to Balamb Garden piece by piece.

Dante tried the handle on the door before pounding on it. There was no reply so Dante decided to employ the "Dante Skyle alarm clock".

"Steven!" He yelled. "Open the bloody door before I break it open and rip your head off!" Less than a second later he kicked the door in and stepped inside. The next thing he felt was considerable pain. He'd clearly tripped some sort of booby trap as two arrows shot out, catching him in the thigh and shoulder. After a silent symphony of profanity Dante noticed something worse. Both arrows were attached by wires to what were clearly Claymore anti personnel wires. That meant that Dante couldn't pull the arrows out without setting the Claymores off and being hit by approximately seven hundred steel ball bearings travelling at god knows how many miles per hour. Dante sighed and reached painfully into his for his mobile phone.

"Oh dear," Quistis observed as she stepped in twenty minutes later, not even bothering to hide her smile at Dante's predicament. "Quite a pickle you've got yourself into."

"Just shut your mouth and help me out here." Dante growled glaring daggers at her. "I am not enjoying calling you for help but Mika and Swift have both fucked off so you're the only one."

"And why should I help you?" Quistis demanded. "You haven't done us any favours recently."

"Yeah whatever." Dante snorted dismissively. "I'm really sorry for everything I've done to you and your beloved Commander and I'll never do it again, excepting rocking your world every other day. I can do that again until the cows come home."

"In your dreams Romeo." Quistis bit off. "But back to my question. Why should I help you?"

"Well if you help me I'll kill Squall painlessly." Dante growled. "No need for him to suffer if he doesn't have to."

"Is that a serious answer?" Quistis said. "I suppose if I was to leave you here Steven would turn up and kill you. You've got to admit you're in a bit of a hole. How do you expect to fight him off without blowing yourself up?"

"Quistis," Dante's uninjured arm snaked out and grabbed her by the throat. "What makes you think you can leave? Here's how it's going to work. You can either cut these wires or I'll wait until Steven turns up and then I'll trigger these bombs and kill all three of us."

"Are you crazy?" Quistis choked out as he immediately started to pry Dante's fingers loose from around her neck.

"Maybe." Dante nodded as if Quistis had made a fair point. "Are you prepared to bet your life that I'm bluffing?"

"That's a stupid question." Quistis gritted out as Dante loosened his grip just enough to let her speak. "Dante, is this is some convoluted attempt to get into my panties again it's not going to work."

"Oh listen to that ego." Dante cackled. "My whole world doesn't revolve around the possibility of us having sex again. I think you should know your technique is a tad sloppy. Recommended reading? The Kama Sutra might be a good place to start before allowing some other moron to prise your dimpled knees apart."

"You're a pig Dante." Quistis observed disgustedly.

"Oink." Dante quipped. "I'm a pig that's attached to a couple of bombs that will vaporize you and I unless you clip the wires. There's a pair of clippers on the bench."

"I seriously suggest you run like hell once you're free." Quistis threatened as she grabbed the clippers. "Otherwise these wires won't be the only things I'll be clipping."

"Are you trying to turn me on?" Dante grinned before giving her throat a quick squeeze. "Get on with it."

Quistis clipped the wires but before she could throw a barbed remark at Dante he shoved her onto the floor before exiting. Quistis looked up just in time to see him wink flirtatiously at him and blow her a kiss. Quistis sighed before slamming her fist against the floor. Dante had once again developed an uncanny ability to drive her absolutely insane. She hoped dearly that when Steven finally got around to killing Dante he wouldn't do it quickly.

Stevens's crusade against vampires was hindered a few days later when Dante used a sniper rifle to trigger the Claymores from half a mile away, blowing the vampire hunter's base of operations sky high.

* * *

Technically speaking, the Ragnarok Airship still belonged to the Estharian Government but Laguna had conveniently forgotten to ask for it back. Selphie had it converted into a long range, supersonic troop carrier and dozens of seats had been bolted to the floor of the cargo hold. There was an almost palpable mood of anxiety and possibly a little fear in the air.

The only person who was actually looking forward to slaughtering every monster he could find. Whenever Zach though no one was looking he would grin to himself and rub his hands together in anticipation. One of his defining characteristics was an enormous, nigh insatiable love for violence. He'd even admitted that he found the very act of violence therapeutic once of twice, and this had led to a number of psychological assessments. In spite of this there was no one Rinoa would rather have at her side, with the possible exception of Mark.

District Nine had four main entrances, conveniently named North, South, East and West. Rinoa's squad, Squad D went in the West entrance. The Esthar Special Forces let them through before forming a barrier in a bid to stop any monsters escaping to other parts of the city. District Nine was lit only by streetlamps, and most of them were out of order anyway. The whole place was eerily silent and it looked almost entirely deserted.

"Hey Mark," Zach broke the silence. "I'll give you a bottle of whisky if you can kill more monsters than me."

"Make it a crate and I might take you up on it." Mark replied as he unslung his hammer and gave it an experimental swing. "Keep your eyes open. God only knows what's waiting for us down here."

Mark got his answer less than a minute later. With a screech a Red Bat plummeted towards them, fangs exposed. Mark's face darkened. His left shoulder bore a scar he'd received from a Red Bat in the Fire Cavern. He'd taken the wound as a personal insult and dedicated himself to eradicating the species altogether. Before he could do anything there was a high pitched whistling sound as Zach loosed a throwing star. It severed the bats left wing and the imbalance sent it lurching to the ground at Zach's feet. Zach promptly stomped its head flat and giggled as he retrieved his throwing star.

"That was fun." He turned to Rinoa and Mark who were exchanging deeply significant looks. "What? It's what I do."

"Dude you have serious issues." Mark decided as he hefted his hammer. "You do know that right? I think the doctor needs to test you for psychosis. You know, again."

"How could you say that?" Zach exclaimed melodramatically. "I'm wounded my dear Markus, wounded I tell you." He loosed another throwing star and dropped a second Red Bat. "I feel better."

"Glad to hear it." Mark thundered. "Though you certainly won't feel better if you call me Markus ever again," A beat. "Zachary."

"Can we leave the alpha male pissing contest out please?" Rinoa said, fixing both boys with a glare. "In case you haven't forgotten we have a job to do."

"Duly noted." Zach said as he passed a drain. "But this place is dead. No monsters here." The words had barely left his mouth when what looked like a featureless black shadow slid from the drain and seized Zach's ankle with its long, curved fingers. While not the most dangerous monsters in the world, Creeps could be deadly, especially if you forgot their affinity for electricity which was exactly what Rinoa did. She cast a Thundaga spell on the beast but it simply absorbed the blast and redoubled its attempts to drag a swearing Zach into the sewers.

Mark dashed forwards, raising his hammer. The Creep saw the blow coming and nearly avoided it. If Mark's attack had been on target it would've killed the Creep instantly but he merely struck it a glancing blow. That said, the force was sufficient to make it relinquish its grip on Zach and attack Mark. Mark however was ready for it. The next blow with his hammer through it against a wall. Before the Creep could react Mark pinned it to the ground with a boot and raising his hammer proceeded to reduce it to a sludgy substance. Zach picked himself up and nodded his thanks to Mark.

"Don't mention it." Mark smiled back as he finished beating seven bells out of the Creep. "Just try not to tempt fate again okay?"

It was Mark who was the victim of a surprise attack next but luckily his comrades were on hand to help. A Forbidden lurched out of the shadows and stunned Mark by clocking him on the head with the hilt of one of its rusty but razor sharp "Betrayal Swords". As it loomed over Mark, smiling a sinister gap toothed smile Rinoa made a snap decision and hurled a potion at it. As an undead monster, a Forbidden was weak to healing medicine and magic. The Forbidden staggered backwards before charging at Rinoa waving its blades madly. Zach had a different sort of lesson in mind. He moved in, swept Rinoa behind him and punched the Forbidden so hard in the chest he smashed clean through its sternum. It stumbled unsteadily back and Rinoa finished it off with a Cure spell.

"Come on guys." Zach exulted. "Don't tell me that wasn't fun."

"Zach," Rinoa said exchanging another long suffering look with Mark before nodding at his hand. "Look at your hand."

Zach looked and scowled. There was a long shard of bone sticking out of his hand between the third and fourth fingers. Zach snorted and yanked the fragment out and tossed it contemptuously. They carried on without incident at least until Rinoa made a discovery. It was what looked like the half eaten carcass of a Grendels and bits of what she suspected had once been a Tri-Face. Both Grendels and Tri-Face's were pretty nasty as monsters went. If they were dead that meant that something very nasty was nearby.

"Maybe that's why we haven't seen a lot of monsters." Mark mused as Zach crouched down and examined the corpses. "Something's scaring them off."

"Okay this could be bad." Zach said before pointing at the spot where the Grendels head used to be. "Look at these tooth marks. I think I can make a pretty good guess at what killed these things." He lapsed into silence.

"Yes?" Rinoa ventured before deciding to go for the blunt approach. "Come on Zach, spit it out."

"I could spit it out I suppose," Zach grunted, po-faced for once. "But I guarantee you won't like it. My advice right about now would be run like hell."

"Come on Zach, you know we can't do that." Mark pressed. "How bad can it really be? Cough up."

"Just remember you asked for it." Zach smiled grimly. "These teeth marks are rare, but completely unmistakeable. I agree with your theory that the small amount of monsters we've come across is because something is scaring them off. The half full ends there. The something in question, I'm ninety nine percent sure we're dealing with a Malboro."

"Jesus Christ." Rinoa cupped her face in her hands. You'd be hard put to find someone who disagreed that Malboro's were the most dangerous monsters on the planet. Even a fully qualified SeeD team would be hard put to subdue one. A Malboro's favourite method of attack was the infamous Bad Breath ability that would affect the target with every status effect going; poisoning them, confusing them and blinding them to name just a few. "We have got to get out of here."

"She's right." Zack concurred as he stood up and backed away from the corpses quickly. "It's probably caught our scent already and I'm prepared to bet it's stalking us right now." He and Rinoa immediately started to head back the way they'd come. Mark however didn't move.

"What do you guys think you're doing?" He snapped. "So we're dealing with a Malboro? Big whoop. If it was easy we wouldn't be here. I don't know about you guys but I'm not going to run from one of those things."

"Mark, have you ever seen what a Malboro can do?" Rinoa replied. "It's suicide to go up against one of those things."

"You're the squad leader Rinoa." Mark said. "I'll follow your orders but just know this. I'm one of the few people in Balamb Garden history who's encountered a Malboro before, and I'm one of only three who's killed one all by myself."

"Yes but that one was barely an adolescent." Zach persisted. "Judging by the bite size this one is a big solitary male. So maybe you killed a young one by an unlikely fluke but this is an entirely different kettle of fish."

"It was no fluke." Mark retorted brightly. "I knew exactly what I was doing and the same rules apply." He crossed to what looked like a deserted pub and broke the door open.

"What are you doing?" Rinoa asked as she and Zach followed him.

"Allow me to assume command for a moment." Mark said as he headed for the dust covered bar. "Rinoa, find me three rags. Zack, help me find the strongest bottle of alcohol in this place."

"So what, you're going to get snockered now?" Zach muttered incredulously as he scanned the shelves.

"It's not to drink." Mark replied as his gaze fell upon half a dozen bottles of Everclear Alcohol. "I had a dog and his name was bingo. Everclear Alcohol, ninety five percent." He quickly filled a sink with all six bottles. Rinoa returned with three scraps of material.

"Are you going to tell me what you're up to yet?" She demanded.

"For reasons unknown to science ethanol negates the effects of Bad Breath almost entirely." Mark said as he took the rags and dropped them into the sink. "We don't have any ethanol so we need the next best thing; alcohol, the higher concentration the better. We soak the rags in it, tie it across the mouth and nose then we should come out alive, although maybe a little drunk. That's how I bested the Malboro I killed and there's no reason why it shouldn't work with this one."

"This is a fully grown Malboro we're going up against." Zach was clearly unconvinced. "Maybe it'll work against the smaller ones but I'm still for running like hell."

"I've heard urine works best if you'd rather try that." Mark bit off. "When I killed the Malboro I used Smirnoff, which is forty percent alcohol. Everclear is ninety five percent alcohol so that should compensate adequately."

"I don't think it's a bad idea actually." Rinoa said admiringly.

"What?" Zack howled.

"Come on Zach," Mark attempted to reason with his classmate. "Is there any reason why it shouldn't work?"

"Fine." Zach relented. "I'm fairly sure this is a bad idea and I'm equally sure that it won't work but in for a penny, in for a pound."

* * *

All the cadet's uniforms had been fitted with bugs so the examiners had a good idea of how the cadets were faring. Every examiner was gathered around the audio feed from Squad D.

"Everclear," Cid echoed shaking his head and laughing. "Absolutely inspired. That's Cadet Astonol getting a pass for sure."

* * *

With their impromptu gas masks secured, Rinoa, Mark and Zach walked slowly down a street, alert for any danger. As it was Mark's plan he took point with Zach and Rinoa on either side and slightly behind. Technically Rinoa was still the squad leader but Mark was the only member of the team who'd successfully taken on a Malboro so she bowed to his superior knowledge on the subject.

"So where is this chain smoking pain in the neck anyway?" Zach asked after about ten seconds.

"Chain smoking?" Rinoa enquired uncomprehendingly.

"Well it _is _called a Malboro." Zach clarified. "You know, Malboro? Do I have to spell it out? The cigarette brand?"

"That's _Marlboro _genius." Mark interjected. "Marlboro. It's got an r in it. You with me so far?"

"It's got an r in it." Zach mocked, putting on a convincing impression of Mark's voice. "Same difference."

"Put a sock in it the pair of you." Rinoa growled with enough venom to shut both of them up instantly. "We've got a job to do. We're hunting down a seriously dangerous monster and do you seriously think the other teams are wandering the streets talking at the top of their voices like a bunch of dickheads from _Saving Private Ryan_?"

It was at that precise moment their quarry put in an appearance. With it's signature cackle a fully grown Malboro boiled out of a side street and slammed into Mark like a runaway freight train. He flew about twenty feet and hit the ground like a body thrown off a skyscraper. The Malboro advanced towards Mark's motionless form, it's tentacles weaving in some grotesque parody of a victory dance. Zach and Rinoa reacted instantly. One tentacle was severed as Rinoa launched the Shooting Star. As it returned to her wrist Zach launched a hail of throwing stars. The Malboro wheeled towards them and it's body inflated slightly. Rinoa and Zach both held their ground, painfully aware of what was about to happen. Dodging Bad Breath was pretty close to impossible so it was simpler to just trust that Mark knew what he was talking about.

A cloud of greenish-black gas exploded out of the Malboro's gaping mouth and came towards Zach and Rinoa like an unholy fog of tear gas. It blasted both of them off their feet. Rinoa was slightly lighter than Zack so she flew slightly further. They both leapt to their feet and it seemed, incredibly that Mark's idea had actually worked. Knowing how to evade Bad Breath from a Malboro was not the only reason Mark was a highly respected SeeD cadet. Mark proved this point by recovering very quickly and charging straight at the Malboro and hitting it with a hammer blow that probably would've flipped a generously proportioned SUV. The Malboro couldn't ignore a blow like that and attempted to bat Mark aside with a tentacle. Mark dodged and started grabbing at the throwing stars embedded in the beast's side. He started twisting them out and throwing them back to Zach.

"Thanks!" Zach yelled.

"Any time!" Mark yelled before he took a blast of Bad Breath at point blank range. He cart wheeled backwards until his progress was halted by a brick wall. Mark slumped to the ground unconscious for the second time in as many minutes.

Rinoa had stocked plentiful supplies of the potent Forbidden magic just in case things got heavy and she guessed that there wasn't likely to be a better time to use it. Zach was currently locked in close combat with the Malboro as he retrieved the throwing stars that were still stuck in it and lashed out with his blade like limbs. The Malboro stood up to the blows being rained on it admirably but they still stung and would very quickly become a major irritant. The Malboro spun around and wrapped a tentacle around Zack's waist before bearing him aloft and opening it's mouth wide. Zach let out a torrent of curses and immediately attempted to break free by sinking his teeth into the tentacle. The Malboro screeched but didn't let go. With hindsight this was a bad move as Rinoa loosed the Shooting Star and severed the tentacle. Zach hit the ground and took one look at Rinoa before he started scrambling madly out of range. As a Sorceress, magic of any kind, particularly offensive magic was most definitely Rinoa's strong suit.

"Eat this!" Rinoa shouted before going for the grand effect and casting Ultima on the Malboro. An explosion of emerald green fire exploded around the monster hurling it across the street and demolishing a concrete but stop.

The Malboro disentangled itself from the wreckage as Zach advanced towards it. He adopted a combat stance, feet apart and centre of gravity low. The Malboro hissed deafeningly as it faced him off. Scare tactics, testing the waters. Zach didn't flinch.

"Yeah, yeah real scary," He replied evenly. "Now back off and maybe I won't have to cut you into little pieces."

Rinoa's mouth fell open and a peculiar little moan escaped it. Banter! Zach was literally attempting to engage a Malboro in a macho repertoire. If she hadn't seen it herself she wouldn't have believed one human could contain that amount of audaciousness.

The Malboro hissed again, a little miffed at Zach's reaction. Generally speaking, the mere sight of the Malboro sent whatever was facing it scurrying madly for cover but this specimen was obviously harder to rattle than most. The Malboro was hurt and it decided to afford these assailants the same respect it would afford another male of it's species. This did involve dealing with them the same way Malboro's settled every conflict.

"Hit me big boy!" Zach bellowed before leaping over one tentacle and ducked another. He danced forward and subjected the Malboro to a flurry of fast, accurate and wilfully lethal martial arts moves. For the Malboro is must have been like the entire world was conspiring against it. Every time it had prey in it's sights something new got in the way. It's torment was far from over.

"Okay!" Mark bellowed as he got back to his feet. "Now I'm really pissed off!" He dashed forwards and leapt onto the Malboro's back.

Rinoa felt a small pang of sympathy for the Malboro as Mark began to pummel it relentlessly with his hammer. The beast was caught between Zach's martial arts in front of it and Mark's hammer behind it. Rinoa's sympathy however was not nearly enough to stop her doing what needed to be done. The angelic, white feathered wings erupted from her shoulder blades and bore her aloft. She extended a hand and the Malboro rose into the air. Mark jumped off and he and Zach immediately made for cover. Rinoa's will touched the Malboro and without any warning it simply winked out of existence. Mark and Zach's mouths fell open in perfect, unrehearsed unison. The wings disappeared and Rinoa returned to the ground. She staggered and would've fallen had Zach and Mark not dashed over and propped her up.

"You're a little scary sometimes." Mark observed as he handed her a potion which she hungrily gulped down. "Brilliant, but scary."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Rinoa nodded as she pulled off her "gas mask" and tossed it aside. "Your Everclear face mask was genius Mark. Sheer genius."

"What about me?" Zach pouted outrageously. "Don't I deserve some credit in this as well?"

"I must say Zach," Rinoa said after a few seconds of thought. "If I hadn't seen you engage a Malboro in a macho repertoire I wouldn't have thought anyone could be that brave, or possibly foolhardy."

"I'll take it." Zach grunted. "I think it may have something to do with the fact that as soon as the bastard stopped using Bad Breath I started sucking every drop of Everclear from my mask."

"Of course you did." Mark sighed while Rinoa rolled her eyes. "Come on, let's get this exam over with."

* * *

**Author Commentary: I'm not going to lie to you, if you're waiting for Mark and Zach to jump into the story properly you'll be waiting for a good long while. They're supporting characters and if they become important to the overall arc it'll be a long time and that is one big if. I do enjoy writing them both so you can rest assured you'll see them again. You may be wondering why I chose a Malboro as the "primary antagonist" of this chapter. Isn't it obvious? Forget Ruby Dragons, Hexadragons or Behemoths. Malboros are EVIL! If you want the tentacles for Doomtrain or Quistis' Save the Queen just stockpile the cards. Safer you know? I enjoyed the scene in Steven's camper van with Dante and Quistis. I enjoy writing Dante as a complete dick because the guys people skills are far from perfect. There's a reason for that. The next chapter is going to be extremely important to the overall arc, in fact it's the next chapter that was a major factor in starting this fic in the first place. There will be violence, betrayal and maybe even some romance. The turn is coming and the fallout of Alexander's extra curricular activities will become abundantly clear. Oh and did I mention a new and hopefully unexpected antagonist will rear his head. Believe me guys, it's about to spiral out of control. Thanks again to my readers and reviewers. I'd be nowhere without your support so thanks go out to each and every one of you, Dee and Bebedora are being singled out for particular praise. I love you guys and thanks a million.**

**~Ally Todd**


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty Two: A Town Called Malice**

Rinoa, Mark and Zach returned to Garden almost glad to get a break from the notoriety, adulation and borderline hero worship they'd received from their comrades after successfully taking on a fully grown Malboro, Mark's improvised gas masks having already become the stuff of legend. Rinoa immediately took a long shower, changed back into casual dress and decided to locate her friends. Zell and Irvine were as usual in the canteen stuffing their faces. Rinoa had recently calculated that was it not for their intense self-discipline when it came to fitness their food intake would result in them being kicked out of SeeD so fast their feet wouldn't touch the floor. Rinoa circled around the canteen and came up behind Zell before clamping her hand over his eyes.

"Hey Zell," She chirped cheerfully. "Guess who?"

"Umm," The martial artist put a melodramatic finger to his lips, pretending to think about it. "Rinoa?"

"Yeah, but keep guessing anyway." Rinoa continued, exchanging an amused look with Irvine, before the sharpshooter continued tossing cherry tomatoes in the air and catching them in his mouth.

"Rinoa." Zell said injecting some certainty into his tone as he plucked Rinoa's hand off his face and caught the tomato Irvine flung at him in his mouth before standing up and taking a bow as the sharpshooter applauded.

"I can't fool you." Rinoa said to Zell as she sat down. "So who wants to hear about the field exam?"

"Before we hear about your exploits Miss Squad Leader," Zell said eyeballing Rinoa severely. "I sincerely hope you brought my protégé back alive and well?"

"Zach's fine Zell." Rinoa assured him. "You know, careful examination has convinced me that he may be a psychopath."

"That's not psychosis," Zell protested looking affronted. "That's just the fact that he has bags of enthusiasm."

"What a surprise, Zell defends his secret love." Irvine cackled. "Just marry Zach and get it over with Zell. We wouldn't be giving you so much stick if you did."

"Shut up Irvine." All credit to Zell, he didn't lunge over the table, attempt to drag Irvine out of his chair and throw him out the nearest window. "So come on Rinoa, tell us how your field exam went. You didn't end it running from a giant mechanical spider did you?"

"No we didn't." Rinoa replied, wondering if Zell would ever let it go. Ever since his own filed exam in Dollet Zell had taken being chased by the Galbadian "Black Widow" war machine as a personal insult. "But we did manage to kill a full size Malboro."

"Wow, two pints to Rinoa." Irvine drawled, evidently impressed. "How did you do that then?"

"Mark Astonol soaked rags in Everclear and we tied them over our mouths and noses to avoid the Bad Breath." Rinoa explained. "Then it was a fairly simple matter to keep hitting it until I got bored and removed it from existence altogether. I can't wait until Squall hears."

"If I were you I'd steer clear of our illustrious Commander for a while." Zell advised in an undertone. "It transpires that our own personal fanged pain the arse Dante Skyle is not dead yet. Squall took this news rather badly and he looks like he's in the mood to do some damage."

Before Rinoa could think up a reply to contradict Zell as much as to convince herself a message came over the Garden intercom.

"Could all students that participated in todays field exam report to the second floor corridor." A politely synthesised voice said. "Repeat, could all students that participated in today's field exam report to the second floor corridor."

"Once more into the breach then." Rinoa grunted standing up before turning back. "Wish me luck?"

"Good luck." Zell said. Irvine attempted the same sentiment. Unfortunately his mouth was packed to the point of exploding and it came out as a sort of strangled grunt. Rinoa and Zell's heads turned towards him in eerie unison towards him.

"Good luck Rin," Irvine replied after swallowing hugely.

When Rinoa exited the canteen the first thing she saw resulted in her coming to a screeching halt, if not rooting her to the floor altogether. Standing not five metres away and evidently waiting for her was none other than Mika Skyle. At least a half dozen emotions battled it out on Rinoa's face. Anger won.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" Rinoa demanded, striding forward once she'd regained motor functions and poked him not too gently in the chest. "If Squall sees you in the Garden…"

"He'll glower and throw some death threats around, yawn." Mika completed. "Put your claws away Rinoa. I was in the neighbourhood and I thought I'd swing by and say howdy. If I'm really lucky I might see Squall and I can tell him exactly what I think of him hiring a sub contractor to kill me and my brother."

"And that would be what?" Rinoa enquired.

"Well seeing as you ask," Mika grinned. "I'd tell him to call his vampire hating bloodhound off and to come after us himself once his balls have dropped. Or alternatively I could just throw him out his office window."

"Well as much as I would enjoy throwing idle threats around with you," Rinoa bit off sarcastically. "I have somewhere to be."

"Oh right, today was your final field exam wasn't it?" Mika nodded cheerfully. "How did it go?"

"How did you know today was my field exam?" Rinoa demanded.

"I know everything." Mika replied placidly before laughing. "You mentioned it in Esthar, where, if memory serves I saved your life."

"Your point being?" Rinoa was apparently not in a forgiving mood but if she was hoping to put Mika off she was in for a big disappointment.

"My point is that saving your life might warrant a modicum of respect, maybe get you to cut me some slack." Mika explained pointedly. "Yes I'm a vampire and I'm sorry I didn't tell you but hey, there are a lot worse vampires out there than me. You've got to get over it Rinoa."

"Fine!" Rinoa snapped. "Keep moving and I'll cut you a break. Now if you'll excuse me…" She pushed past him.

"You know what I like about you!" Mika bellowed for the entire hall to hear. "You know how to make a man feel welcome!" He smiled and headed for the training centre. He looked back to see Rinoa entering the lift. "Good luck." He whispered.

* * *

Rinoa, Zach and Mark were waiting with the other nine SeeD candidates in the corridor waiting for the results of the field exam. Mark and Rinoa were both too cautious to risk tempting fate but as far as Zach was concerned his place in SeeD was assured. Rinoa would never admit it, but she privately though it would be a crying shame if any of her team were overlooked, her self included.

Footsteps announced the arrival of a member Garden Faculty. In the days of Garden Master Norg, the Garden Faculty had been Shumi Tribe members in ostentatious robes and a slightly insane sense of self importance. Nowadays they were burly ex-army type humans in olive green battle fatigues, carrying assault rifles. The sense of self–importance however remained unchanged.

All the cadets immediately snapped to attention. Despite the fact they all utterly loathed the Garden Faculty without exception they still had enough sense to afford them grudging respect, mainly thanks to the Garden Faculty's habit of handing out psychotic punishment with little or no provocation. The Garden Faculty consulted his clipboard and allowed the tension to build for a few seconds before speaking.

"Wallace," He said emotionlessly. "Zachary Wallace from Squad D."

"Get in!" Zach bellowed before going into a weird sort of war dance, jumping around and punching the air like a demented, dark skinned goblin. "See you!" He danced off along the corridor towards the lift.

The next cadets whose years of work had paid off were two twin girls from Squad A that had effectively eradicated an infestation of Grats with liberal use of improvised petrol bombs. The fourth was the leader of Squad C who'd taken on an Imp in single combat, beaten it to a pulp with the butt of his rifle, finished it off with his last two bullets and not got a scratch. Rinoa took a deep breath to steady her nerves. Mark placed a supportive ham sized hand on her shoulder. Rinoa smiled up at him, grateful for the support.

"Astonol," The Garden Faculty announced. "Markus Astonol from Squad D." Mark shrugged, hefted his hammer and headed after the other successful cadets. If Zach had overreacted to the good news then Mark had under-reacted massively.

Rinoa was always a pretty positive person but she remembered Squall saying that only four cadets has been selected when he'd become a SeeD. Five had been selected already, and Rinoa wasn't among them. The only glimmer of hope was the fact that the Garden Faculty wasn't looking as if he was finished. Rinoa crossed her fingers.

"Heartilly," The Garden Faculty announced, and Rinoa's legs very nearly gave way with relief. "Rinoa Heartilly from Squad D."

It transpired that Rinoa had been the last cadet to be successful and all six new SeeD's trooped into the office where Squall, Cid and Quistis were waiting. Rinoa attempted to catch Squall's eye but Squall was too busy handing the medals awarded to new SeeD members to Cid. Rinoa shrugged and although her memory quickly replayed Zell's dire warning she put it out of her mind. There would be plenty of time to celebrate at the graduation ball and later, Rinoa was fairy confident that the celebrations would take on a more intimate mood in her and Squall's room.

"Congratulations new SeeD members." Cid said it quietly, though his voice rang through the room. "You have all been chosen because you showed skill, courage, teamwork, good judgement and improvisation…" His gaze lingered momentarily on Mark "…in the field. In short, the qualities we look for in SeeD's are particularly prominent in all of you. I believe the Commander would like to say a few words."

"I'll make this quick as I have things to do." Squall said monotonously. "Well done."

_Well done. _Rinoa thought, smiling surreptitiously. _There's the highest praise Squall knows._

"I second that sentiment." Quistis said, smiling at all of them before she and Squall sprang to attention and saluted. "Dismissed."

While the other new SeeD's exited (Zach putting on a self important swagger that would've put Dante to shame. A self important swagger that Dante would've killed for in fact) Rinoa approached Squall.

"Squall are you going to be at the graduation ball tonight?" Rinoa asked.

"I don't know." Squall replied without turning around. "I've got a lot of work to do for tomorrow. I think it'll be like last years ball to be honest. I'm sorry Rinoa, but needs must."

"Oh no it's not that easy." Rinoa told him. She'd faced down a fully grown Malboro so Squall in a bad mood would be a picnic. "Last year you were just Commander, so you weren't obligated to go in the strictest sense. This time however you're Commander _and _the boyfriend of one of the graduates so I'm not taking no for an answer."

"Rinoa," Squall sighed turning to face her. "There are more important things in the world than a graduation ball. I will try to look in on it but I have some important work to do."

"Important work?" Rinoa echoed before smiling wickedly. "I though all work counted as important in the world according to Squall Leonhart."

"You're not funny." Squall thundered. "If you must know, Dante Skyle is still on this island somewhere and I have to deal with him before anyone else gets hurt."

"Are you forgetting what happened on New Years Eve?" Rinoa demanded, deciding to pass over Mika's reappearance. "Just let your vampire hunting friend deal with him. He's dangerous."

"I hired Steven Knight over a month ago and Dante Skyle is still alive." Squall explained with a face like thunder. "So I'm going to ask Steven what's gone wrong. Why he's succeeded in killing Swift and Mika but not Dante."

"Well I don't know about Swift but I doubt Mika's dead." Rinoa opted to go for the plunge. "Before I headed up to the second floor I saw him. Large as life, or death as the case technically is."

"Oh you have got to be joking!" Squall collapsed into his chair and groaned. "That does it. Steven Knight is fired. It's time for me to take matters into my own hands. Mika and Dante have both got long overdue appointments with my gun blade."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Rinoa asked, trepidation etched on her features. "The last time you messed with Dante he could've killed you."

"That's why I'm going to be smart." Squall smiled grimly. "Remember Rinoa, the three bywords of SeeD operations. Speed, surprise, overwhelming violence."

"Squall," Rinoa said. "That's four words."

"Irrelevant." Squall waved a hand. "First I have to give Steven the boot and then I'll deal with Dante and Mika. I think this whole vampire thing has run it's course don't you?"

* * *

"You call me and I come a-running." Steven said as he took a seat across the table from Squall. "This little working partnership of ours could use a little give and take."

"Well you probably won't have to tolerate it much longer." Squall said. "Why don't you update me on our vampire situation?"

"These creatures are smart to say the very least." Steven shrugged. "I don't know how they've managed to evade me this long. That said however, they can't run forever. Sooner or later I'll bag them."

"No, you won't." Squall said cutting to the chase. "You're off the job. SeeD are taking over. Your methods have not provided the desired effects so you're off the job end of story."

"Oh no I'm not." Steven replied. He said it light-heartedly but Squall noted something ugly stirring in his eyes. "I have a one hundred percent record against vampires. Only one other hunter has done that until he disappeared about eight years ago."

"I don't care." Squall replied stubbornly. "When I hired you I was told you were the best and so far I have seen nothing to support that theory. You're off the job Mr Knight and that is that. Don't feel as if you have to keep in touch."

"You can let me go." Steven said. "I was late to this meeting because one of these animals blew up my van. I am not letting them go. I will kill them because that is what is normal for me."

"I don't give a damn what is normal for you." Squall snapped. "You're not going to kill these creatures, at least not on my island. So I suggest you leave this island now, if not sooner."

"Do you have any idea what you're dealing with?" Steven growled. "If I can't kill these vampires, and I'm not saying I can't you aren't going to have better luck. If you want these creatures dead, then you need me."

"I'll take my chances!" Squall barked, turning heads. "I want you off my island by nightfall. Fail to comply and I will have you locked up and if that doesn't teach you some manners we may have to resort to other measures."

"Why don't you show me some of then now?" Steven said softly. All traces of tolerance on his face had vanished and his fists were clenched.

"Don't tempt me." Squall hissed his jaw tight with anger. "Why don't you go to Galbadia and take on the vampires there instead?"

"I've explained this." Steven retorted. "Once I start something with some vampires I don't stop until they're dead and no glorified fencer is going to change my mind about it."

"It's a gun blade." Squall replied, seething that he was getting attitude from whom he considered a savage clod. "If you don't do as I say, you'll get a close up look at it."

"Did I just hear a threat?" Steven demanded.

"Would you like to?" Squall replied with a downright sinister grin. "Take me up on it and I'll show you what you really need to deal with vampires. Don't, and you will leave Balamb before nightfall."

* * *

Rinoa looked into the ball room and was reminded forcefully of the night she'd met both Squall Leonhart and Cid Kramer. Once again the dance floor was full, the men in their SeeD uniforms and the women in their elegant evening gowns. Rinoa had turned to Selphie for help in selecting an outfit that would get Squall's attention and the diminutive brunette had come up with the goods. Rinoa wasn't a girly girl at the best of times but she did like to dress up every now and then.

Selphie had spent the better part of an hour working Rinoa's hair into an elegant bun and she'd picked out a strapless, sapphire blue mermaid gown. She also decided on pastel pink lipstick and silver eye shadow. The overall effect was stunning.

"You know Rin," Selphie said as they entered the ball room. "I think I may have overdone it a tad. Squall will have to get through all the other guys who'll be fighting tooth and nail for a shot at you looking like that."

"Well, appealing as that sounds they'll have to get used to the fact that I'm already taken." Rinoa replied. "Though if Squall doesn't show up soon I may have to readdress my definition of fidelity."

"Is that a fact?" Selphie and Rinoa wheeled around to see a casually dressed Mika standing behind them, smiling like a loon. "I didn't have you down as that kind of girl Rinoa. You look beautiful by the way."

"And you're here for what?" Selphie demanded.

"Oh don't be like that." Mika chuckled, his eyebrows dancing. "If I was here for trouble you'd know about it. Seriously now, what is your problem with me? Dante, I can understand; you met him. Why am I getting the cold shoulder especially after I saved Rinoa's life back in Esthar?"

"The whole, undead, drinks blood part of your resume springs to mind." Selphie carped antagonistically.

"Is that it?" Mika laughed. "Vampires are seriously misunderstood creatures, or at least vampires like me are seriously misunderstood creatures. I drink from blood bags and animals only. I can't remember the last time I had warm human blood from the vein."

"Is that so?" Selphie snorted. "Well that's it then. You're totally absolved of the fact that you are a monster."

"A monster?" Mika enquired with a wide eye expression of innocence. "What part of the whole misunderstood bit did you have trouble grasping? Come on ladies, sit down and have a drink with me. Get to know me. At the risk of sounding a bit too much like my barbarian of a brother, I'm fairly sure you'd like it."

"Yeah?" Rinoa replied aggressively. "Well I'm pretty sure we would not. Goodbye Mika. Come on Selphie; let's leave Count Dracula to his own twisted and amoral devices."

"It hurts when you say stuff like that Rinoa." Mika said as both girls resolutely turned their backs on him and stalked off. He laughed to himself and sauntered past the drinks table, swiping a bottle of beer as he went.

"Hey Rinoa," Mark said as he loomed up, seemingly out of nowhere. "Was that guy bothering you? Should I offer to get inappropriately violent?"

"Thanks Mark but it's nothing I can't handle." Rinoa replied. "Go back to the party and let me deal with him."

"Okay," Mark said jauntily. "Well done at making SeeD. If anyone says you only passed because you're involved with the Commander let me know and Zach and I will show them the error of their ways." He headed off.

"Now I'm beginning to see how Mika and Dante are related." Rinoa thundered as she shot a glare at Mika across the dance floor. He smiled lazily back and raised his beer bottle as if to say; "here's to you".

"Don't let him get to you." Selphie advised. "You're just letting him win by working yourself into a state. Mind you, at least we can keep an eye on him here. God only knows what his nut case of a brother is up to."

"God, or possibly Quistis." Rinoa reasoned. "Quistis says that she's perfectly happy for us to deal with Dante in whatever way we see fit but I think she's still got residual feelings for the guy."

"How'd you work that one out?" Selphie asked.

"Well let's have a look at Quistis dating record." Rinoa said. "I can't think of many guys she's been out with, other than Dante. She did jump into bed with him from the get go, meaning she really liked him, and in spite of what Dante's been up to recently, you can't just turn feelings like that off. Don't tell Squall I said this, but sometimes I wonder what things would've been like if I'd stayed with Seifer."

"I'm almost tempted to tell Squall that just to see how he'd react." Selphie laughed as she grabbed a glass of non-alcoholic champagne from a passing waitress. "This pregnancy thing is a bitch. When the kid is born I think I'll celebrate with a major league piss up what say you?"

"It's a date." Rinoa agreed. "Speaking of which, have you got a date for the birth yet?"

"The Doctor says it's too early for that." Selphie answered. "That said, going on the nine months theory I'm guessing it'll be sometime in September."

"I can't believe you're actually having a baby." Rinoa laughed. "Give us a few years and we'll all be getting married. It's really weird and sort of terrifying at the same time don't you think."

"You don't know the half of it." Selphie replied. "If I wasn't sure I'm ready to be a mother I probably would've blown my brains out by now."

The night wound on and Mika eventually tired of Rinoa constantly giving him either the cold shoulder or a withering glare so he simply decided to leave and hunt some monsters in the Training Centre. For some reason he couldn't quite fathom he felt almost compelled to hang around and keep an eye on Rinoa. He'd have to figure it out sometime.

"Hey Rin," Selphie nodded towards the entrance to the ballroom. "Look who finally decided to show up." Striding forwards, dressed in his SeeD uniform and looking as if there was nowhere on the planet he wouldn't rather be was Squall. He reached the table where Rinoa and Selphie were sitting.

"You look beautiful." He said monotonously, his eyes on his own feet. Rinoa and Selphie exchanged looks. The Commander wasn't exactly a chatterbox but he was seldom this cagey.

"You don't look too shabby yourself." Rinoa replied deciding to pass over Squall's bad mood. "Come on Squall, come and dance with me."

"Actually I was hoping we could talk." Squall said brusquely. "No offence Selphie but could you be somewhere else?"

"Offence taken Squall." Selphie bit off. "If you ask me nicely I'll go, but only if you say please."

"Selphie!" Squall snapped before composing himself. "Please could you give Rinoa and I a minute to ourselves? It won't take long and then you two can party to your hearts content, though I wouldn't drink too much Selphie unless you're interested in offing junior."

"Charming." Selphie snorted before heading off to join Irvine and Zell on the other side of the dance floor leaving Rinoa and Squall alone.

"Okay Squall," Rinoa smiled at her boyfriend. "So what's on your mind? Spit it out, I haven't got all night. There are other things we need to do instead of talk if you know what I mean."

"I've got a pretty good idea, and that's the problem." Squall replied. "I know I've been working a lot recently…"

"Okay let me stop you there." Rinoa said. "You say you've been working a lot? Damn right you have but that comes with the territory, and with our little vampire problem you've been working overtime. It's no big problem."

"If you only knew." Squall laughed bitterly. "Back when we defeated Sorceress Ultimecia, I thought I could successfully juggle my professional and personal lives. I don't think I've ever made such a massive mistake."

"It wasn't a mistake." Rinoa protested, though now she could distinctly feel some nameless dread bearing down on her. "You managed it for the last four years didn't you?"

"I only barely managed to hold it together for four years." Squall corrected. "Now I'm tired. Having to deal with work on top of being in the most high maintenance relationship in history isn't living. It's existing and to be brutally honest I'm not getting anything out of it. Why don't we just do the grown up thing and call it quits right here?"

"Why are you saying this?" Rinoa whispered, her mind reeling and her eyes shining bright with unshed tears.

"I'm just trying to be honest." Squall said with a harsh edge in his voice Rinoa had never heard before. "Believe it or not, I'm trying to do what's best for you."

"Believe it or not, breaking up with me is not what's best." Rinoa replied, tears rolling down her face. "What are you trying to say?"

"What I'm trying to say is next time I want a real girlfriend, not a stick figure." Squall barked. "Yes I know you were anorexic when you were fourteen. It's all right there in your medical file. Some people felt sorry for you, but not me. You can't feel sorry for a freak. Get the picture?" Without waiting for an answer he spun around and strode out of the ballroom, leaving behind a shell shocked Sorceress. Rinoa dimly registered a concerned Selphie, Zell and Irvine heading towards her but Rinoa didn't wait. Lifting up her dress, Rinoa fled the ballroom in floods of tears. There was nothing her friends could do. She wanted to lick her own wounds.

Alone.

* * *

Dante had finally succeeded in tracking down Steven but the circumstances were less than ideal. The vampire hunter was lying less than ten yards from his destroyed camper van. At least his body was. His head was mounted on a sharpened quarterstaff in front of the ruined vehicle. Dante was deeply disappointed.

"Well that's no fun."

* * *

**Author Commentary: No I did not enjoy doing that to Rinoa, and I truly feel for her. This is the real turning point in Doomsday Part One and for some reason it seems oddly appropriate that I'm listening to "Basket Case" by Green Day while writing this. This is about as bad Squall is going to get and I think you all know who's to blame. In the next chapter you'll see people trying to come to terms with what's happening to Squall and very soon you will be reintroduced to the uber-badass of Final Fantasy Eight, Seifer Almasy himself. If you're able to guess who Rinoa will turn to in her time of need you will win absolutely nothing because let's face it. It's not difficult and it will have far reaching consequences. To all you Squinoa fans out there, please try counting to ten before declaring blood feud on my home. There's a reason for this. To say the very least Squall's not himself. As ever thanks and hugs are headed for all my readers and my lovely two reviewers Bebedora and Dee. You guys keep me going and without you I doubt I would've got past chapter five. Thank you all so, so much.**

**~Ally Todd**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Revenge**

Dante didn't take the death of Steven particularly well and when he opened the door of his new flat in Balamb he was steaming drunk, and his visitor's identity didn't help his mood much.

"Well look who it isn't." He slurred, peering blearily at Mika who was observing him with distaste. "What do you want?"

"I thought I'd happen by to see my big brother." Mika grinned. "Maybe that was a mistake. You smell like a brewery! How much have you had to drink?"

"Never mind that." Dante burbled as he stood aside and let Mika in. As Mika deposited himself on a beanbag chair. Dante jerked a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the kitchen. "Drink?"

"No thank you." Mika said before noticing Dante swaying a little. "You could do with not having one either. I'll put on coffee so you can sober up while you tell me how things are going with our vampire hunter friend."

"There's nothing to tell." Dante said as he crashed onto a dilapidated sofa and glowered murderously at the floor. "He's dead."

"I must say I'm impressed." Mika smiled reluctantly. "I wasn't sure you had the skills required to take him out. He was a real piece of work but he knew exactly what he was doing. Us being vampires gave him every reason to want us dead and he had the skills to make it happen. How did you do it?"

"I didn't." Dante answered. "I found his base of operations and after I blew it up I went to see if he was around and I found his head on a stick. I've got pretty much no idea who did it but when I find out I'll give them flowers and a black eye."

"Oh come on Dante." Mika snorted. "It's not that difficult to figure out. It'll be Swift or Alexander. Who else could it be?"

"It wasn't Alexander." Dante said decisively as he accepted the mug of coffee Mika handed to him. "Even if he wasn't doing it to mess with me he wouldn't be that low profile. I'm not ruling out Swift, but I can always pick up on his tells and it doesn't fit. I hate to admit it but I haven't got a clue."

"He was employed by Balamb Garden." Mika said. "We know that for a fact so why don't we ask them? Maybe the someone that killed him wasn't messing with us. Maybe the someone who killed him was messing with them."

"Like who?" Dante muttered sceptically.

"Well I do happen to have an interesting theory." Mika had a gift for processing information rather rapidly and coming to a perfectly rational explanation. "What do you know about a man named Seifer Almasy?"

"Almasy?" Dante echoed. "He's the Balamb Garden cadet who went crazy four years ago and started making mayhem I would be proud of. Not a lot of details have ever been released but I heard he was dead or on the run."

"You can get the details if you know where to look." Mika said mysteriously. "Long story short, Almasy has every reason to hate Balamb Garden and everything it stands for. It's not a leap."

"I don't know." Dante grimaced. "My limited knowledge of the man assures me that he's not stupid. Why would he go to all the trouble of committing a grisly murder directly under the noses of people who have been looking for him for the last four years?"

"Pride?" Mika suggested. "From what I know about Almasy he's a wild card but he really doesn't like being shown up. If it is him, and I'm not saying it is I think he's trying to show Balamb Garden that he's completely untouchable."

"Well they could use someone telling them that they can't do whatever they like." Dante admitted. "That said, I don't see it but we'd be remiss if we didn't consider all the possibilities."

"So what do you suggest?" Mika asked.

"Why don't you work on the Almasy front?" Dante said. "I'll see if I can get a hold of Swift. They're our only suspects and I'm aware it's unlikely either of them are responsible. I also want to keep Balamb Garden in the dark about these developments for as long as possible okay? I want to see the look on Squall Leonhart's face when I tell him his ace in the hole is dead."

"You're never going to let the disrespect thing go are you?" Mika observed as he stood up. "I do find Almasy I'm guessing you want him alive."

"Preferably but he is dangerous." Dante replied as he grabbed his phone. "Are you carrying?"

Mika pulled his jacket open to reveal a handgun in a shoulder holster before he headed out the door while Dante dialled Swift's number. It rang continuously before going to voicemail. Dante cursed. Swift was probably ignoring him, so he'd be a lot likelier to answer if he didn't know who was calling. Dante decided to give it maybe an hour before calling again from a phone box.

* * *

Rinoa didn't even bother going back to the dorms to change out of her dress but then again she wasn't paying a great deal of attention to where she was going, her mind still reeling from Squall's tirade. His people skills weren't the greatest but they were a marked improvement on the emotionally stunted soldier she'd regarded him as when they met. However she highly doubted that even back then he would say the things he'd said.

Rinoa stooped for breath and found herself in the parking lot. She hesitated briefly before heading over to the key locker. It was locked so Rinoa summoned a small Fire spell and blew the door of its hinges. She grabbed a key for a Range Rover and heading over to it slid into the driver's seat. She put on her seat belt and kicked her heels off as they clearly weren't designed with driving in mind. Rinoa wiped her tears away and accelerated out of the Parking Lot and then out of Balamb Garden.

_Where are you going to go Rinoa? _A small voice said in her mind but Rinoa wasn't in a particularly logical mood. She kept going over Squall's abuse in her head but she couldn't see why it had happened. She'd been looking forward to dancing with Squall at the very least that night. Now it had all fallen apart and Rinoa just couldn't deal with it. If she'd told her friends what had happened Selphie at least would've given Squall a right earful and that could blow up to the extent of Balamb Garden tearing itself apart. Rinoa accelerated further, trying to put as much distance between herself and Balamb Garden.

It was at that point a figure stepped out into the road. Rinoa slammed the brakes on but in just another thing to make Rinoa's day worse. The front wheels hit a patch of black ice and the car careered on and hit the pedestrian. Rinoa jerked the steering wheel as the body flew up and over the car. The windshield disintegrated into a curtain of cracks and Rinoa jerked the steering wheel back the other way. With a horrific rending of metal the car flipped into the air and smashed back down. Then it collided with a tree and came to a halt on its roof.

In what she'd later describe as a minor miracle Rinoa was still conscious. She turned her head slightly, growling in pain as the movement aggravated what were most likely whiplash injuries to her neck. The pedestrian was lying prone in the road. Rinoa couldn't see his face but there was something about his build that was very familiar. As Rinoa watched the guy raised his arm. There was a crunching sound as he jerked it violently before getting to his feet. He was wearing a hood and he approached the car, apparently no worse for wear. He walked towards Rinoa's car. The way he was walking for far too energetic and Rinoa doubted he was coming to see if she was alright. He stopped by the car and then bent down.

"Hey!" Mika said his features full of concern. "What are you doing in there?"

"Mika!" Rinoa exclaimed as she attempted to get free. "My arms stuck. It's my seatbelt. Help me."

"Okay hold on." Mika pulled out a knife and reached into the car. "I want you to put your hands on the roof and stay still. Try not to panic. I'll have you out of there in two shakes of a lamb's tail." He quickly sliced through the seat belt. Then he opened the door and wrenched it with all his strength tearing it off its hinges. "Okay Rinoa, just try to relax." He gently dragged Rinoa out of the car and made her stand up. "Are you okay?"

"I've been better." Rinoa sobbed.

"You're fading fast." Mika said concernedly, noting the cut on Rinoa's forehead and her shaking legs. "Look at me, Rinoa come on, look at me. Look at my face." Rinoa managed to focus on Mika's face before her eyes fluttered shut and she passed out, help up by Mika. Mika grimaced before hefting her in a fireman's lift. "Upsie-daisy." Mika turned around and headed back to Balamb. He studied Rinoa's face as he went. Something was bothering her; that was fairly clear. He would just have to hope Dante was willing to help someone with particularly close ties to Squall Leonhart.

* * *

Rinoa awoke in a rather austere bedroom with sunlight streaming through the window. Rinoa sat up slightly. She was still wearing her dress but she held the duvet against herself. Her SeeD training had taught her to make a note of everything she saw in an unfamiliar area. There was a clock that told her it was nearly ten in the morning. She could remember meeting Mika but there was a leather jacket hanging on the back of the door that Rinoa recognised as Dante's, as well as the crash helmet and MAC10 machine pistol lying on a table across the room. Rinoa sat up straighter.

"Hello?" She called out.

"Hello Rinoa," Dante said as he came into the room. "Let me be clear. I'm not too happy about you staying here but my brother made a convincing case to let you stay. Do you want to talk to him?"

"Yes if that's alright." Rinoa was surprised at Dante who was being, by his standards, civil with her.

"Mika, your friend wants to see you." Dante called before picking up his gun and twirling it before sitting in an armchair and studying Rinoa. He noted her anxious glances at the gun. "Don't worry Rinoa, I'm not going to kill you, but if it makes you feel better…" He unloaded the magazine, dropped the bullets on the floor and then reloaded the empty magazine. Mika entered and smiled at Rinoa.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Physically a lot better," Rinoa attempted to smile back but simply looked as if she had lockjaw. "Psychologically, not so much."

"It was just a car accident." Dante spoke up. "It's not the sort of thing that usually results in PTSD or something similar."

"Dante, shut up." Mika said studying Rinoa's face. "You're not talking psychological after effects of a car accident are you? You're talking about something else. I'll understand if you want to tell us to go to hell but you never know we might be able to help you. Tell us what happened."

"I don't know…" Rinoa said hesitantly.

"Rinoa, you don't have to tell us anything." Dante said. "It looks like you're hurting, quite badly I might add. Mika and I have a very special array of very particular skills and if you want revenge on whoever's made you this upset we can deal with them. It's not Squall is it?" Rinoa flinched and Dante exchanged a look with Mika.

"I don't want to jump to any crazy conclusions." Mika said. "The way you flinched when Dante mentioned Squall's name. Is Squall the person who's hurt you? If he is, just tell us and we can decide what to do. Would it be easier if Dante was to leave?" Rinoa and Mika both looked to Dante.

"If that's what you want." Dante said.

"No it's okay." Rinoa attempted a smile again, but it looked more like a leer. "Maybe telling people will help but before I tell you, I have to tell you something about my past. When I was fourteen, I was anorexic. Squall obviously read my medical file and last night, to say the very least he wasn't very understanding."

"Take your time Rinoa." Mika prompted her. "Don't leave anything out. Just tell us everything."

So Rinoa did, starting with Squall's distant behaviour after she became a SeeD. When she moved onto Squall's beliefs that Steven wasn't doing his utmost to kill them Dante's eyes narrowed. As Rinoa moved on to the scene in the ball room she started crying again but managed to get through it. After about five minutes of the most desperate bawling he'd ever heard Dante handed a small bottle of whisky to Rinoa. She used it to calm herself down.

"Rinoa, you're not going to like this." Dante said. "The vampire hunter Squall hired to go after us is dead. I found his body and his head mounted on a stick yesterday evening."

"And you think it was Squall?" Rinoa asked incredulously. "No it wouldn't be him. Squall's not like that."

"After what you say he said last night I'd say all bets are off of what's he's capable of." Dante continued. "I don't think he's just having a bad time and I don't think it's alcohol. I think it's time we approached the worst case scenario." He expected Mika to interject but Mika about faced and stormed out of the room. Dante turned to Rinoa. "Wait here."

Mika was in the kitchen. He found another bottle of whisky and wrenched the top off before downing a third of it in a single breath. He pounded a clenched fist on the work surface as Dante entered.

"I'll kill him!" Mika steamed furiously. "What gives him the right to talk to her like that? Humiliate her? Squall Leonhart needs to be taught a lesson and he deserves a right beating at the very least."

"Mika calm down." Dante said. "I'm far from Squall's biggest fan. Going after Squall and giving him a pasting won't help Rinoa. Just take it easy. If my hunch is right, then Squall isn't to blame."

"Let me guess, Alexander Obsidian right?" Mika growled. "You think that it's the whole soul removing thing. You don't want to go after Squall. It's murder, or GBH at the very least and it's the end of you when Alexander finds out. Squall is his new plaything and Alexander doesn't like people playing with his things."

"Let him do his worst." Mika growled. "I'll have Squall and if Alexander doesn't like that than that's not my problem."

"It will be when he drives a redwood through your chest." Dante continued. "He's violent, unpredictable and if you get on his wrong side you will regret it. I'm possibly the only person alive who knows what he's capable of. You don't want him on your case Mika…and you're still going to go after Squall aren't you?"

"Damn right I am." Mika snarled with a flamboyant gesture at the bedroom. "Did you see the state Rinoa was in? I'm not letting him get away with it."

"Mika I know you and Rinoa got close in Esthar." Dante said warily. "She may not feel the same about you as she did there and I think you're letting your feelings for her cloud your judgment."

"That's not what's happening." Mika thundered. "You heard what Squall said to her. Are you so cold you can't see how cut up she was? I just need you to keep Rinoa occupied while I deal with Squall. He needs a little punishment and I will enjoy applying it in a calm and professional manner."

"Fine," Dante sighed and ran a hand down his face. "I'll look after her and for the record I wash my hands. Mika, try not to kill him. If my hunch is correct, it's not actually Squall's fault what's going on with him."

"I'll try but anger is a powerful fuel." Mika shrugged. "He'll be put in hospital for sure." Mika grabbed his jacket and exited. Dante sighed. He really wasn't good at this whole crying on the shoulder thing. He headed back to the bathroom.

"Okay Rinoa," He said brightly. "Mika's gone out for a bit so lucky you, you're stuck with me. Is there anything I can get you? Tea, coffee, maybe a something little stronger?"

"I'm fine but I could use some breakfast." Rinoa said. "I haven't eaten since early yesterday."

"Well I'm sorry but all I've got here is warm soda and breath mints." Dante shrugged. "I tell you what. There's a cracking pub down the road, or at least it used to be cracking. I'll take you down there. They do a great breakfast. All you can eat for five quid a head."

"That sounds good to me." Rinoa got out of bed. "Do you have any clothes I could borrow? I think I'm a tad overdressed."

"I'm not really complaining." Dante said giving her an appreciative once over. "More importantly, Mika certainly isn't. I think he's sweet on you."

"He may well be out of luck." Rinoa replied. "My heart belongs to another."

"Yeah that I personally don't get." Dante returned. "Your heart belongs to another who's been acting like a grade A, alpha male douchebag recently and on top of that he verbally abused you last night. You can have some of my clothes."

Dante was considerably taller and broader than Rinoa, but Rinoa managed to find a shirt that fitted relatively well and a pair of jeans that would've been tight on Dante but fitted Rinoa quite well aside from turning up the hems slightly. She wore her shoes and underwear from the previous night.

* * *

Mika stormed into Balamb Garden with murder in his eyes and his posture warning everyone to get the hell out of his way and to stay there. He thundered towards the lift and Zell and Quistis noticed him getting in.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Zell wondered aloud his eyes narrowed. "Mind you I don't think I'd like to get in his way. He looks like he's about to blow something up."

"That's Mika." Quistis reminded him. "I'm confident in our colleague's ability to deal with him if things get out of hand."

"He is a vampire and I've seen enough really bad movies to know that's never a good thing." Zell continued doggedly. "Don't you think we should get after him? Just in case, you know? Better safe than sorry."

"That's Mika." Quistis repeated stubbornly. "He's the sane brother. If Dante turned up that'd be a much bigger problem but Mika's stable and I don't think he'll be here for trouble."

Mika stepped out of the lift on immediately headed towards Squall's office. Before he got there a security guard stopped him, unbuttoning his holster. Mika punched the guard in the side of the head, knocking him off his feet and sending him crashing to the ground out for the count. Another guard ran towards Mika but Mika kicked him in the chest, knocking him back against a wall before delivering a roundhouse kick to his ribs before flattening a palm and driving it into his temple, giving his brain a right rattling. He then moved towards Squall's door and kicked it open with enough force to snap it off its hinges.

"Come in. It's open." Squall said, looking up from his desk. Before he could do anything Mika grabbed him by his lapels and dragged him bodily over the desk and then pinned him to the wall. "Hey! Hey! Let's be reasonable here."

"Let me enlighten you Squall." Mika hissed between clenched teeth before honouring the Commander with a right hander to the face. "I left reasonable a few exits back!"

"You're getting yourself in a lot of trouble." Squall replied. "If you walk away right now we'll pretend this didn't happen. If you continue I will feel obligated to defend myself by any means I deem necessary and seeing as I don't like you, I'm guessing that's a place you don't want to go with me."

"Actually that's exactly where I want to go with you." Mika growled before punching Squall hard in the guts and bundling him to the floor. Squall rolled back to his feet and aimed a punch at Mika. Mika cough the inside of Squall's elbow and swung an uppercut that would've shattered Squall's jaw if he hadn't been thrashing about trying to get free. Then he shoulder blocked Squall and lifting him bodily smashed him down onto his desk. Squall kicked out and knocked Mika backwards. Squall rolled off the desk and pulled out a knife.

"When you draw a knife, you'd better be sure you know how to use it." Mika observed before holding his arms out wide. "Well go on. Don't tart around! I give you permission. Kill me!"

"Why are you here?" Squall demanded as he flipped the knife in his hands. "What's your problem now?"

"Black hair, brown eyes about five foot four." Mika grinned. "Answers to Rinoa. I ran into her last night and she seemed extremely upset. I got it out of her and, well you know what they say about payback. Well I'm the bitch!"

Squall lunged forwards with his knife and attempted to stab Mika in the neck. Mika dodged and kicked Squall in the ribs before smashing his fist into Squall's funny bone getting a direct hit and making him drop the knife. Mika wasn't finished just yet and he rapidly double punched Squall in the chest before swinging his elbow around and into Squall's throat. Squall gurgled and Mika kicked him in the chest knocking him to the floor again. Mika pulled out an extendable baton and flicked it open to its fullest extent. He smiled down at Squall.

"So which bone do you want me to break first?" Mika asked. "Verbally abusing and humiliating Rinoa was a bad move."

"Oh dear." Squall laughed. "Look at you. She's got you under your spell. You're wrapped around her little finger."

"I already want to kill you but my brother believe it or not he doesn't want me to kill you." Mika grinned. "Don't make me disobey him."

Squall surged to his feet, tackled Mika and disarmed him before punching Mika in the face. Mika twisted free and kicked Squall in the ribs before crawling towards his baton. Squall seized him by the legs and attempted to drag him backwards. Mika kicked backwards and grabbed his baton, leapt to his feet and raised it. Squall however had grabbed the dropped knife and he hurled it at Mika. It struck Mika just above the wrist and he dropped his baton. He wrenched the knife free just before Squall smashed a paperweight down on Mika's head. Mika collapsed and Squall grabbed his Revolver gun blade. He pressed the tip gently against Mika's chest and with a quick flick cut his shirt open before raising the weapon, the tip aimed directly at Mika's chest. Then he looked up to see Dante and Rinoa looking in.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Dante said softly. "Besides, it won't kill him, you need wood."

"Okay what about decapitation?" Squall hauled a barely conscious Mika upright and pressed the Revolver against his neck. "That works right?"

"Okay it's about time you put Mika down and deal with me." Dante said stepping forwards. "It's me you have the problem with. Let him go."

"Come over here and make me." Squall sneered before glaring at Rinoa. "I'm glad you're here so you can see me cut your boyfriends head off."

"Mika's not my boyfriend." Rinoa returned. "Neither are you. Squall Leonhart is my boyfriend. You're not him. I can see it, I can hear it and believe me when the time comes I'll have no problem dealing with it, perhaps fatally. Now let Mika go or you'll be sorry."

"Okay," Squall said pleasantly before his features hardened. "Oh wait, I forgot. No."

"That's it, I'm done asking nicely." Dante ripped out his MAC10, expertly flicked the safety catch to single shot and fired, getting Squall in the thigh. Squall fell over backwards with a groan of pain. Mika staggered forwards and Rinoa caught him before he fell.

"Get Mika out of here." Dante told Rinoa firmly as he kicked Squall's gun blade out of reach. "Believe me; you're not going to want to witness this. Now Squall, I believe it's high time we had a talk. If you interrupt I will shoot you. Understand me?"

"Screw you." Squall scoffed before spitting at Dante.

"I don't see this being settled through reasoned discussion." Dante said before stomping on Squall's face. Squall's nose broke and blood fountained. "Let me make this as clear as I can. You go near Rinoa or my brother again, I _will _kill you." Dante headed out of the office and was almost immediately accosted by Quistis.

"Dante?" She asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Your boss just tried to chop my brother's block off," Dante growled. "and last night I believe he broke up with Rinoa, verbally abused her and humiliated her to boot. If you don't believe me then ask him."

"Why would he do that?" Quistis demanded.

"One word." Dante growled. "Alexander."

* * *

**Author Commentary: I get the impression that Squinoa fans are not best pleased with me, and they're probably going to hunt me down given what happened here and what's going to happen pretty soon. The Squinoa relationship as of now is in tatters. Bad times. Rinoa however has a spine of steel and while she may have difficulty I wouldn't be at all surprised if she handles things. I know she came across as a bit of an annoying child in the game (believe me I know) but she's had four years to mature. The full extent of Squall's affliction will come to light in the next chapters and you will also be pleased to know that the chapter will see the return of Swift and possibly Alexander as well as the return of a slightly more familiar character who knows his/her stuff and what's going on. Feel free to leave a review hazarding a guess at who this character may be. As always thanks to my readers and reviewers Bebedora (District 9, great film but not the best in my opinion) and Dee. I love you all and thanks for my continuous support.**

**~Ally Todd**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty Four: Conversations With Dead People**

By the time Dante, Mika and Rinoa returned to Dante's flat, Mika had regained full consciousness but as far as he was concerned being clocked on the head with a paperweight was a humiliating takedown and a personal insult. He stormed into the kitchen, nearly tore the fridge door of its hinges and grabbed a can of beer. He popped it open and drank half of it in a single breath.

"Don't be so down on yourself." Rinoa advised him. "Squall knows his stuff and he's not known for being easy to take down."

"I've been fighting the best people in the world for near enough eight decades." Mika growled. "I'm clearly a little out of practise, which is weird because I haven't been cutting down on monster killing or weight training."

"It was anger." Dante explained as he pulled off his shoes, socks and jeans that were all splattered with Squall's blood. "It's a powerful fuel but it also goes hand in hand with taking stupid risks and making amateurish mistakes. It's natural unfortunately. I know you're good Mika but you'll eventually make a mistake. God knows I've made enough."

"The only mistake I made was not getting a gun, sticking it in Squall's face and decorating the wall with his brains." Mika growled as he drained the can, crushed it and tossed it into a bin. "I'm going to have a shower." He rampaged off towards the bathroom.

"He took that badly." Rinoa exchanged a look with Dante. "Does he ever get that worked up?"

"Almost never." Dante shook his head. "I'm the impulsive brother. Mika's calm and collected on an almost religious level and I can't remember the last time I saw him fly off the handle. You're not going to like my theory as to why but I think we need to talk about it. Wait for the shower."

A few seconds later the hum of the shower started. Dante headed towards his room and invited Rinoa in with a jerk of the head. Dante crashed onto the bed and unscrewed the top on a bottle of whisky while Rinoa took a seat in the armchair.

"This is mighty ominous." Rinoa observed uneasily. "What's the problem Dante? Spit it out."

"Earlier I said Mika was sweet on you." Dante held up a hand to quickly silence Rinoa's protests. "I wasn't sure then, but after what he did to Squall I'm sure. Maybe the feelings aren't reciprocated but is it possible, however unlikely that you led him on at all?"

"No." Rinoa shook her head vehemently. "Absolutely not! I'm not that kind of girl. I've been Squall's partner for the last four years, although I'm guessing that's not on the table right now. Maybe Mika got the wrong idea but I'm not leading him on. Final."

"Maybe not deliberately." Dante said calmly. "Mika has a bit of a side line in close protection and body guarding and he's become emotionally involved with the principal more than once. Is it so difficult for you to believe that it could happen again?"

"He's a nice guy Dante." Rinoa told him stubbornly. "Maybe he's gotten fond of me but the feelings not mutual. I like him enough, but not romantically."

"With that in mind I think there are two possible courses of action." Dante said. "You can tell Mika straight up that nothing's going to happen or we could keep it quiet and watch how he acts around you. You know, just to make sure."

"I'm inclined to go for door number two." Rinoa took a deep breath. "As for telling Mika it's not going to happen…I hadn't said no for all time. It's just that all the Squall issues are sort of with me so dating is not high on my list of priorities." It was at that point her phone rang.

"Are you going to answer that?" Dante asked.

"Hello?" Rinoa said as she answered it.

"Rinoa where are you?" Selphie shouted down the phone. "Someone got into Garden and beat seven colours of shit out of Squall. He's got a broken nose, three cracked ribs and he was shot in the leg. You have to get back here now!"

"I'm somewhere safe Selphie." Rinoa told her friend. "I needed to get away and sort through some things. As for Squall, if he wants to see me I'll come but I seriously doubt he does. We're going through a bit of a rocky patch."

"Pants on fire." Dante muttered.

"Rinoa tell me where you are." Selphie said. "You haven't seen the state of Squall and Quistis thinks it was one of the vampires that knocked him about."

"Hang up now." Dante hissed. "No questions, just hang up right now."

"Look Selphie I have to go." Rinoa said. "I hear the doorbell going. I'll call you later okay?" She hit the disconnect button and looked at Dante. "What was that all about?"

"Call me paranoid but I'm guessing Balamb Garden were trying to triangulate your position." Dante said. "Possibly on Squall's orders. After what Mika and I did to him I think Squall will want revenge. I don't want you in the firing line."

"I'm a Sorceress Dante." Rinoa replied. "I can handle myself thank you very much."

"Against someone with Squall's skills?" Dante carped. "Perhaps someone with Squall's skills whose soul has been removed?"

"Is that what's happening?" Rinoa asked, her memory flashing back to the night of the Balamb Garden Christmas party.

"I can't be sure because I've never seen it happen," Dante shrugged. "But in lieu of any other theories I'll take it."

"I suppose it makes sense." Rinoa mused. "Squall's not the easiest person to deal with but he's never acted like he did last night. Is there any way to tell for sure about his soul?"

"I've got no idea." Dante admitted as he pulled out his phone. "I do have a pretty good idea about who we need to ask."

* * *

"So Squall's going to be alright then?" Selphie asked Zell as the brawler emerged from the infirmary.

"The man's made of iron." Zell said. "His ribs will be fine, and his nose doesn't need any reconstructive surgery. There was a bit of concern about the bullet he took in the thigh, but it was nowhere near the bone of the femoral artery so he'll be okay."

"That's good." Selphie nodded. "Those vampire brothers have got a lot to answer for. I tried to triangulate Rinoa's phone but the call wasn't long enough to put a trace on it."

"You worry too much." Zell told her. "Rinoa will be fine. Sorceress remember. She also took out a Malboro on the field exam and that to me is the mark of someone who's safe as houses. I remember the last time I fought a Malboro. Bad Breath hit me so hard that if you'd give me a gun a week later I still wouldn't have been able to hit the planet I was standing on."

"You underestimate yourself." Selphie said giving Zell a playful shove that nearly pitched the brawler headfirst into the fountain. "Why would Rinoa need to disappear like she did? She said she had a couple of things to work out."

"Maybe she's pregnant." Zell snickered. "I don't know why, but I think girls who are pregnant act like total nutcases a lot of the time."

"The thin ice you are on is over very deep water Zell." Selphie growled, but Zell made a living from being nigh impossible to rattle.

"I didn't mention that the powers that be want me to try out for the SeeD tactical diver squad did I?" He laughed. "Okay, okay I'll shut up. You know a few years ago Irvine and I were doing a stakeout and we started giving all the girls awards you know. Quistis got best legs and hardest to get into bed, while Rinoa got most likely to get married first."

"Men." Selphie snorted but Zell had piqued her interest. "What about me? What did I get?"

"Prettiest eyes and least likely to get pregnant." Zell chuckled. "I guess it just goes to show you can never predict women."

"And what did the library girl get?" Selphie said, knowing full well referring to Zell's girlfriend by her nickname would push him off the deep end.

"Okay, point one her name is Alexis." Zell replied calmly (a landmark for him). "And point two; she got best boobs. I was dead proud."

"Now I completely understand the appeal of lesbianism." Selphie muttered. "All men are total pigs."

"Aw come on Selph," Zell gently ribbed her. "You don't mean that."

"Oh yes I do." Selphie said, though the smile on her face pretty much gave her away. "It's thanks to men I've got a life growing inside me that's kicking seven bells out of my stomach. If anyone ever tells you pregnancy is easy don't believe them."

"No one ever says pregnancy is easy." Zell pointed out.

"Okay that's fair," Selphie admitted. "I'll tell you one thing though. No one can possibly imagine how hard it is. That said I wouldn't change it for the world. Morning sickness that can't tell time notwithstanding."

"I can't believe you're pregnant." Zell said shaking his head. "Well actually I can, I just cannot believe you're pregnant with the child of Irvine Kinneas. Last man in the world to become a father no?"

"He's matured a lot recently." Selphie said in defence of her partner. "He hasn't flirted with anyone else for at least six hours."

"Ye gods!" Zell exclaimed pulling a face of mock surprise. "That's got to be a personal best. Either that, or someone has hijacked Irvine's body."

"Let's not rule it out." Selphie laughed. Before the conversation could progress any further the lights suddenly went out.

"Of all the times for a power cut…" Zell stopped at the sound of steps behind him and turned to look. The man's face was in shadow but there was no mistaking his build or the gun blade strapped to his side.

"Squall?" Selphie asked. "What are you doing out of the infirmary? I though the Doctor was going to keep you in overnight for observation?"

"She discharged me." Squall replied still not walking forwards. "What's up with the lights?"

"I don't know." Zell said. "Will you two grab some candles? I'll check the fuse box."

"Forget about that right now." Squall said decisively. "I've got something to show you. Zell, go get the others."

"Right." Zell dashed off.

"And Selphie," Squall said taking a step forward. "Come here. I've got something to show you. It's amazing."

Selphie walked slowly towards Squall but stopped at the unmistakeable sound of an automatic weapon being cocked. She turned around to see Edea standing less than twenty metres away, holding an automatic pistol equipped with a silencer, aimed at Squall's head.

"Selphie get away from him." Edea ordered. "Walk to me."

"What are you talking about?" Selphie said right before Squall moved towards her and locked his arm tightly around Selphie's throat, an expression on his face that no one would have ever expected. He barely looked human, his face full of hatred and sadistic pleasure. Zell reappeared with Irvine and Quistis in tow.

"Don't do that!" Irvine yelled, pumping his shotgun.

"Oh I think I do that." Squall retorted, tightening his grip until Selphie couldn't breathe particularly well.

"Squall…" Selphie choked out.

"He's not Squall anymore." Edea informed them before directing her next words at Squall. "Are you?"

"Wrong!" Squall growled, baring his teeth at them. "I am Squall at last."

"Oh my God." Irvine murmured which as far as everyone else was concerned was the understatement of the decade.

"I've got a message for Rinoa." Squall continued.

"Then why don't you give it to me yourself." Squall spun around, still holding Selphie to see Rinoa standing behind him. She was flanked by Dante and Mika, both of whom were aiming assault rifles at Squall's head. Rapid footsteps and the sound of weapons cocking announced the arrival of Garden security.

"It's not the sort of message you tell." Squall explained as Zell moved surreptitiously up behind him, taking Edea's gun. "It more involves finding all the bodies of your friends."

"Squall there must be some part of you who remember who you are." Rinoa said, though she was fairly sure the monster wearing Squall's face was past the point of listening to reason.

"Dream on Sorceress," Squall spat venomously. "Your boyfriend is dead. You're all going to join him."

"Leave Selphie alone," Rinoa ordered. "And deal with me."

"But she's so cute," Squall returned pinching Selphie's cheek. "And helpless. Really a turn on."

Zell shoved Edea's gun under Squall's ribs from behind. Squall swung Selphie into Zell and they both collapsed into the wall. Dante and Mika moved in but Squall punched Dante in the face before grabbing Mika by the neck and heaving him into the fountain. Edea dived forwards but Squall shoved her back and grabbed Rinoa, pinning her to the wall.

"Things are about to get very interesting!" He whispered before kissing her. Then he shoved her violently to the ground and backed out of the double doors leading to a fire exit.

"Rinoa are you okay?" Zell asked as Mika emerged from the fountain, spluttering and cursing. Rinoa didn't reply, she just stared at the door Squall had disappeared through. "Rinoa?"

* * *

Quistis called a crisis meeting in her office. In attendance were Selphie, Irvine, Zell, Cid, Edea, Dante, Mika and a practically comatose Rinoa who was sitting motionless in a chair, her eyes empty not saying a word.

"So we're absolutely sure that Squall has lost his soul and joined the other side?" Cid said after a large brandy. "Are we certain?"

"Oh yeah we're all certain." Irvine said assertively. "Is anyone here not feeling certain at all?"

"Cid you wouldn't have believed him." Selphie said despondently, rubbing her bruised throat. "He came here to kill us."

"That's not important." Mika said dully. "What's important is what we're going to do about it?"

"I'm leaning towards blind panic personally." Cid muttered.

"Oh good, mope around." Dante sneered. "That'll help. I warned you this could happen but oh no, no one listens to me. However I'm in a charitable mood so allow me to shed some light on just exactly what is going on. Swift Obsidian's sociopathic brother Alexander has got into dark magic. Alexander is one of the oldest vampires on record and that makes him immensely strong. He's got delusions of grandeur and I think we can work on the assumption that he's got aspirations of world domination and who better to help him than the world's foremost swordsman Squall Leonhart. That also leaves us with another problem. Alexander is looking for a Sorceress and id he and Squall are working together it won't be long before Alexander shows up, kicks the door in and takes Rinoa."

"So what do you suggest?" Quistis asked.

"Well a pretty solid plan would be shooting Rinoa in the back of the head," Dante shrugged. "But I'm guessing that's out. Rinoa needs to go off the grid for a while. A long while. She needs to go somewhere out of the way and she needs to travel with protection. The best man for the protection job in my opinion is Mika. Do any of you have any idea about where Rinoa and Mika could hide out."

"I want to go back to the Forest Owls." Rinoa said tonelessly. "Zone, Watts and I promised to liberate Timber together."

"Well that's decided." Irvine said. "Can we get back to the main problem? There's an ancient nigh invincible vampire in town and now Squall's joined his team. I'd say we've hit bottom."

"I have a plan." Dante announced.

"Oh no here's a lower place." Irvine muttered.

"We have two problems." Dante said. "Squall Leonhart and Alexander Obsidian. Once we find them I know how we'll deal with the latter. Swift and I both have the desire and ability to kill him. Hopefully that should reverse the spell on Squall. If not, we'll have to improvise because I don't think Swift and I can take on Squall and Alexander at the same time. We'll need something to distract Squall and it preferably needs to be something or someone that can handle them if things get out of hand. Any thoughts."

"In the whole time I knew Squall only one person could hold his own against him." Cid said slowly. "Seifer Almasy." He sat down and waited for the objections. It was very short wait.

"Absolutely out of the question!" Zell barked upending his chair. "We cannot possibly bring Seifer in! He's a loose cannon and probably the only person in the world that could make this situation any worse! We cannot go to him!"

"If you have a better idea Zell we're all ears." Quistis said.

"Give me time." The brawler murmured but it was utterly without conviction.

"That's one thing we don't have." Dante said, sounding more and more like a natural leader. "I think we'd be stupid to ask Seifer for help but there is one pretty massive gaping flaw that I can see."

"No one has the foggiest where Seifer is," Irvine pointed out. "Let alone whether he's alive or not."

"Two points to the cowboy." Dante nodded. "No one knows where Seifer is and we can't waste time looking for him."

"Actually, that's not quite true." Quistis began hesitantly after exchanging a look with Cid. "Say we knew exactly where Seifer was?"

"What?" Zell howled, exasperation practically stamped on his forehead. "You knew where he was all along and you didn't tell us?"

"Only four people in the world know." Quistis reasoned. "Five if you count Seifer himself. Frankly, the only people with a high enough pay grade to receive concrete information on Seifer Almasy were Cid, Squall, Laguna and I. What I'm about to tell you goes no further than this room. Seifer Almasy was captured by Esthar Special Forces, tried and sentenced to life without parole in the maximum security facility known as Screamer Mountain."

"I think it's time we paid the worlds most wanted man a visit." Dante said cheerfully.

* * *

Ever since Laguna Loire had taken power in Esthar they had never employed capital punishment as the legendary Screamer Mountain complex was a handy alternative. It wasn't really a mountain as it was buried under a kilometre of ice in northern Esthar. It had originally been built as a prison for political prisoners under Sorceress Adel's regime. When the Loire administration took power it played host to anyone the government didn't want but wouldn't (or couldn't) kill. Most of the inmates were terrorists, double agents or indeed ex-mercenary sociopaths. Quistis and Dante were waiting in the visiting room when the person they'd come to see appeared. Dressed in jeans, a white beater and unbuttoned dark blue prison issue shirt his blond hair had grown longer and his green eyes shone with the old fanatical fire.

"They told me that my lawyer was here to see me." The prisoner said. "Are you my lawyer now Instructor?"

"Hello Seifer." Quistis replied guardedly, looking her ex-student over. "You look absolutely terrible."

"That's what she says to all the boys." Seifer's voice was cracked and hoarse from prolonged lack of use. "Where's my old buddy Squall? I thought he'd come to see little old me."

"Squall's unavailable in every sense of the word." Dante spoke up casually. "He's been making a little trouble for us and you are going to help us take care of him one way or another."

"Listen up whoever you are." Seifer broke in. "In case you haven't noticed I'm a little preoccupied. I'd ordinarily tell you to check back in twenty five or thirty years when my parole comes up but apparently in Esthar life without parole means life without parole."

"Do I have to remind you we're friends with the president?" Quistis demanded. "We can give you a pardon and brand new life if you help us."

"Why should I help you?" Seifer growled. "You've tried to kill me several times in the past. I don't owe you anything. If it's Squall's time of the month then that's not my problem."

"It isn't just Squall's time of the month." Quistis explained, keeping her temper in check admirably. "Long story short, he's gone crazy and he seems awfully interested in killing all of us. After he's killed us, how long do you think it'll be until he comes after you?"

"Let him come." Seifer growled. "After that stunt with the Lunatic Pandora I doubt Esthar will release me no matter how extenuating the circumstances are. I don't walk in your world anymore and I doubt I ever will. End of chat."

"Sit down Seifer." Quistis ordered. "Even if Esthar won't let you go we've prepared for that eventuality. You'll have to escape."

"Let's for one moment pretend I'm interested." Seifer replied his eyes on Quistis. "I'm not doing it for free. I'll want payment and believe me it won't be cheap."

"What do you want?" Dante demanded.

"Merry bushels of cash," Seifer reeled off readily. "Guaranteed protection and most importantly a guarantee that I'm not to be in anyway lynched."

"Anything else?" Quistis enquired sarcastically.

"Well you could always get Zell to do some grovelling." Seifer snickered. "By the way I'm not sure if you've noticed but Screamer Mountain is pretty much inescapable. How am I supposed to break out?"

"We'll give you a cellmate who's easily the best in the business as causing mayhem and carnage, allowing you to slip out in the confusion." Quistis said. "Do the job and you'll get your reward, apart from Zell grovelling. You and I both know that isn't going to happen."

"And this cellmate is…" Seifer began.

"Me." Dante said.

"You?" Seifer exclaimed.

"Him." Quistis confirmed, enjoying Seifer's reaction immensely and not even bothering to hide it. "Seifer Almasy, meet Dante Skyle."

* * *

**Author Commentary: There he is! Seifer is an immensely entertaining character to write, and I think that's primarily because we're very similar me and him. We both are not quite in step with the world but see it as the world's problem not ours. You might be confused about the chapter title but I will explain it now. "Conversations With Dead People" is the seventh episode in the seventh and final season of Joss Whedon's modern masterpiece **_**Buffy: The Vampire Slayer **_**and it's the "stuff happens" episode of season seven. This is the same sort of thing for Doomsday Part One. If you think you've seen action, you couldn't me more wrong. The action coming up will be pretty massive, you can bet on that. It'll make the cyborg attack look like a Saturday night brawl. Incidentally I think I've discovered the most appropriate description of Dante. Check out the new song from Taylor Swift "I Knew You Were Trouble". Squinoa fans are probably going to declare a fatwa on me because of where I'm taking both Rinoa and Squall but I maintain that every half decent romance needs conflict so I'm afraid they'll have to deal with it. Things are spiralling rather spectacularly out of control and it's going to get worse believe me. As for romance, Dante isn't done with Quistis, not by a long way. Expect a great deal more violence and romance. This is it. Thanks and hugs to my reviewers Dee and Bebedora and to all the readers who haven't left a review. I would be utterly delighted if you did leave one. It would mean the world to me.**

**~Ally Todd**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty Five: Maximum Security**

**Two Weeks Later**

Dante took a hard punch to the face and as he staggered Seifer rugby tackled him and lifted him bodily before throwing him to the ground. Before Dante could react Seifer placed a boot on Dante's chest and started to rain punches on his head and face while other prisoners jeered and clapped as the brawl progressed. Dante wrestled Seifer's foot off him and pushed him back but Seifer reacted quicker than Dante would've believed possible. As Dante forced himself to his feet Seifer's clotheslined him flooring him again. Seifer came at Dante trying to stomp his face but Dante rolled aside and swung his legs around, taking Seifer's legs from beneath him. Dante seized Seifer by the shoulders and head butted him in the face. Seifer retaliated and smashed his elbow into Dante's temple and kicking him in the ribs. Dante collapsed, seeing stars, with a growl of pain. He was in serious trouble, semi-conscious and he would've had the crap beaten out of him were it not for the guards wading in to save him. Three guards dragged Seifer backwards, dumped him unceremoniously on the ground and started to lay into him with truncheons.

The beating Dante had received would have put the fittest, toughest human in hospital but vampires were less fragile. Dante pulled himself into a sitting position. His vision cleared to reveal Seifer taking a serious beating. Dante clambered to his feet and grabbed a rock about the size of an apple. He clasped it tightly and staggered towards the guards. He grabbed one on the shoulder and as the guard turned Dante clocked him in the face with the rock, throwing him off his feet and blasting him from the realm of consciousness. One of the other guards swung his truncheon at Dante. Dante grabbed the arm and snapped the guard's wrist. He caught the truncheon as the guard dropped it and swung it in an uppercut that shattered the guards jaw. Seifer surged to his feet and caught the last guard by his lapels and nutted him in the face. He collapsed unconscious. Seifer and Dante gave the guards a once over. The only one that was conscious was clearly in no position to resist with a broken wrist and jaw.

"You two," Seifer ordered, picking out two other prisoners. "Search them. You can keep the valuables." He turned to Dante. "Good job mate, you played your part to perfection."

"And you." Dante said with a tight smile. "Hold on a second, looks like we've got something." One of the prisoners had frisked the guards and got three radios, handguns and a ring of keys. "Bingo!"

"We've got the keys now!" Seifer roared to the other prisoners. He pumped a fist in the air. "Freedom!"

"FREEDOM!" The other prisoners yelled back, punching the air and brandishing a selection of improvised weaponry they'd been manufacturing for such an occasion. As the leaders and instigators Seifer and Dante armed themselves with the guard's truncheons, guns and pepper spray.

All over Screamer Mountain the guards were overpowered by prisoners mainly armed with clubs and knives and as soon as the keys were acquired the prisoners swarmed into the subterranean network of tunnels that connected the various cell blocks. After regular prisoners in Esthar were filled, most criminals went to Screamer Mountain and this meant the prison guards were outnumbered literally by hundreds to one. As Dante and Seifer led their cellmates through the tunnels, guards were bundled into the walls and subjected to savage beatings.

Dante wasn't about to admit it but he was reluctantly impressed by Seifer's leadership skills, intelligence and combat prowess. It was only now that Dante began to see that Cid and Quistis maybe had a point when they said Seifer was the only person to deal with Squall.

As they rounded a corner they saw three guards lashing out with boots and truncheons, seemingly intent on beating a young prisoner, little more than a kid, to death then and there.

"Keep going!" Seifer yelled to the other prisoners. "We'll catch up with you in the central block." He turned to Dante but Dante had already made his move. He thundered into the guards and grabbed one by the head and snapping his neck before shoving the body aside. Another guard raised his truncheon but Seifer shot him twice in the stomach. Dante kicked the gurgling body into the path of the last guard, hampering his progress. The prisoner who'd been receiving the beating kicked out and tripped the guard. He went down hard and Dante and Seifer both shot him through the head.

When they reached the central cellblock the entire complement of guards were either dead, unconscious or otherwise disposed. Seifer took a club and knocked the padlock off a weapons locker revealing rows of SPAS 12 pump action shotguns. Sooner or later, the elite prison guards would show up with state of the art weaponry so speed was of the essence. As Dante loaded his shotgun he and Seifer were joined by a monolithic man carrying a pickaxe of monstrous proportions easily in one hand.

"This is Barret," Seifer explained as the giant started to twirl the pickaxe, the light of battle lust in his dark eyes. "The Titan of Timber."

"Glad you're a friend Barret." Dante nodded, before pumping his shotgun menacingly. "Now can we please get the bloody hell out of here?"

As many prisoners as possible packed themselves into the lift to the surface. Barret was to the fore while Dante and Seifer were right behind them. One of the prisoners approached Seifer and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Can we trust the new guy?" He demanded, casting a significant look at Dante. Dante wasn't particularly surprised as prisons were seldom breeding grounds for trust.

"I'm not the one to tell you who to trust." Seifer replied. "But know that I trust him with my life. If we're going to escape, we all need to trust one another."

The lift ground to a halt and the door inched open to reveal the fact that they'd reached the surface. Several of the prisoners wept, as they hadn't seen daylight for decades. They all tensed themselves as the door opened. Barret was out first and he swung his pickaxe in an uppercut, impaling a guard through the chest. Then a machine gun, mounted up high opened up and the prisoners dived for cover. The slower ones were cut to pieces. Barret, Dante and Seifer took refuge behind a large wheeled dumpster.

"We have to get out of the kill zone!" Seifer yelled. "Push the dumpster. Use it as a shield."

As Dante and Barret heaved the dumpster forward they revealed themselves to guards on either side. The guards however had reckoned without Seifer who had armed himself with two shotguns and was perfectly happy to fire them at anyone and everyone who posed a threat. As Dante and Barret succeeded in getting the dumpster to the other end of the yard, directly below the machine gunner's post Seifer switched one shotgun for a pistol and aimed upwards. He could just see the machine gunner's head and shoulders as he hosed down another group of prisoners. Seifer cocked the pistol and then fired. The bullet caught the man in the neck with a scarlet spurt, killing him instantly. Dante took a shotgun and shot the lock off the gate. The prisoners swarmed forwards.

"Bollocks," Dante shouted as they were confronted by a wall of riot shields and automatic weapons. That wasn't the most immediate problem as a helicopter swooped towards them.

"We need heavier weapons!" Seifer shouted before dashing for a building off to the side. "This way."

They reached the building at a dead run and Barret shoulder barged the door, smashing it off its hinges. Seifer looked around and nodded approvingly before he started to issue orders.

"We have found the armoury gentlemen." He exulted. "Barret, get the weapons locker open. Dante, with me."

As Barret threw his considerable bulk against a steel door Dante followed Seifer up a staircase. They shot a door open and found themselves in an open plan office area. One of the workers pulled out a revolver but Dante and Seifer both fired, which was the signal for a bloody hell to break loose. All the other workers also pulled pistols out but they were up against a former SeeD cadet with a reputation for extreme violence and a highly trained vampire, both armed with pump action shotguns and with nothing to lose. All in all, it was a massacre.

Once they'd cleared the building they returned to the ground floor to find that Barret had managed to get the weapons locker. Seifer looked in gleefully. There were hundreds, possibly thousands of AK-47's stacked up and some of them were even fitted with GP-25 under barrel grenade launchers. Dante's gaze was drawn however by a long tube he recognised as a Stinger missile launcher.

"Keep the ground troops off my back." He told Seifer as he shouldered the launcher. "I'm going to deal with that helicopter."

"We've got your back." Seifer exclaimed before raising his voice. "Short controlled bursts! Conserve your ammunition and only shoot at what you can kill!"

Dante dashed out carrying the missile launcher with an AK-47 slung over his back and he dived behind a badly twisted metal plate before starting to work out where the best place to take a shot at the helicopter would be.

"Seifer!" He yelled over the cacophony. "Get the helicopters attention! Distract it!"

Seifer evidently heard him and he loaded a grenade into his launcher before firing it at the helicopter. In spite of a million to one odds it looped through the air, in one of the open side doors on the helicopter and out the other. Seifer succeeded in getting the helicopters attention and as it turned towards him Dante stepped out of cover and allowed the missile launchers targeting computer to lock on to the helicopter. Dante pushed the fire button and the missile shot out and slammed into the side of the helicopter. The resultant explosion lit up the entire prison. Without the helicopter to back them up the prison guards about faced and retreated.

"They're retreating!" One prisoner yelled.

"They're not retreating." Seifer corrected grimly. "They're regrouping, probably trying to cut us off somewhere up ahead."

"We have to move quicker." Dante added. "Sooner or later they'll be replaced by Special Forces, probably cyborgs and when that happens we're pretty much fucked. Come on let's move!" As they moved Seifer and Dante both saw Barret. The big man had been hit in the throat and was lying face down in a steadily spreading pool of his own blood.

"Poor bastard." Seifer said as he relieved Barret of his own gun and magazines full of ammo.

* * *

"Quistis," Cid said as he barged into Quistis' office where she was briefing Mika on his mission to protect Rinoa at all costs. "News from Esthar. It looks like Screamer Mountain is experiencing a full scale uprising."

"Well that's Dante for you." Mika grunted just audibly. "He's seldom very subtle. I'm sure he's having a whale of a time. If there's one thing Dante excels at its making a splash and going for the grand effect."

"He and Seifer must be getting on like a house on fire." Quistis mused approvingly. "It looks like Dante might have his uses after all."

"Well if we ignore that for one moment can we think about what we're going to tell Laguna?" Cid said. "He's hopping mad and he wants to send the army in to restore calm and that puts Dante and Seifer in danger. We knew they could handle prison guards but Special Forces cyborgs? That's a different story."

"I wouldn't worry." Mika offered calmly. "Bullets can't kill vampires. They can hurt them like hell but…"

"It's not Dante we're worried about." Quistis replied. "When the chips are down he's expendable. Seifer isn't."

"You're worrying too much." Mika said soothingly. "If I know my brother, and it's one of my burdens in life that I do, he can handle himself. As long as Seifer sticks with him they'll be fine no matter what the Esthar Military throw at them short of a tactical nuclear strike."

"Maybe but I'm disinclined to risk it." Quistis said. "Cid you have to stall Laguna. Tell him anything aside from the truth. If we told him we were attempting to facilitate the escape of a convicted war criminal he'd go ballistic."

"He seems pretty dead set on sending the army in." Cid muttered. "But I'll do what I can."

The door opened and Swift obsidian strolled in casually, as ever totally unperturbed by the maddening events that were stacking up. He stopped right in front of Cid and stared at him. Cid angrily returned the vampires gaze.

"I suggest you get on the horn to President Loire and tell him to hold off." Swift told him mildly. "Tell him that the riot in Screamer Mountain is collateral damage in our efforts to contain, or kill a couple of super powered, killing machines by the names of Alexander Obsidian and Squall Leonhart."

"I thought we'd agreed to keep Laguna in the dark about this." Quistis enquired.

"Good luck with that." Swift replied. "Do you seriously think you'll be able to keep it from him forever? What if he asks to speak with Squall?"

"We'll tell him Squall is indisposed." Quistis answered. "I'm pretty much banking on finding Squall, putting his soul back where it belongs and getting Squall back without Laguna ever finding out."

"And Seifer Almasy?" Swift pressed persistently. "Where does he fit in to your grand plan?"

* * *

Seifer rushed forwards and shattered a guards jaw with the butt of his AK while Dante covered the other prisoners. They knew it was only a matter of time before Esthar Special Forces showed up and turned them into colanders so they had to make good steady progress. Dante turned around at the sound of whoops to see several prisoners emerging from the armoury. One was dressed in what looked like bomb squad armour and was toting a full size mini gun. Dante shook his head and laughed. For a gang of ex-cons the inmates certainly knew how to make things interesting. Dante rushed over to the man with the mini gun.

"Can you cut a path towards the main entrance?" He asked to which the man nodded an she targeted a truck full of backup prison officers. In seconds the engine block and fuel tank was penetrated and the explosion flipped the truck nearly crushing Seifer who'd used his trademark dumb luck and overwhelming violence to move further ahead than anyone else. Seifer immediately rushed back and helped the other prisoners cover the man with the mini gun while he hosed down the unfortunate prison guards.

"Helicopters!" Dante yelled as he heard the sound of rotors. The man with the mini gun's armour restricted his movement so he couldn't raise the gun high enough but the helicopters were not gun-ships. They were big beasts with twin rotors. The doors opened and ropes were thrown out. Dante cursed. The Esthar Special Forces had arrived.

Seifer was moving forwards when a tall figure in all black body checked him and through him into several containers. Seifer raised his weapon and fired but the bullets barely staggered his assailant. Seifer disentangled himself from the crates and charged into his opponent. It was like running into a steel wall. The attacker kicked Seifer in the gut, hurling him bodily against a wall. Before it could press its advantage Dante intervened. He hurled a petrol bomb that set the soldier alight before launching an explosive two footed kick against its chest that knocked it down and then stomped its face in. Its head erupted with flashes of arcing circuits before it twitched once and went still.

"Cyborgs." Seifer growled as Dante gave him an arm up. "I really, really hate those things."

"They're going to cut us to pieces." Dante nodded. "When guys like these attacked Balamb garden we used EMP grenades to take them down. What say you we do the same thing here?"

"We don't have any EMP grenades." Seifer pointed out, stating the obvious. "The only way to replicate the effect would be setting off a nuclear device which would vaporise us to."

"Oh I wouldn't say setting off a nuke is the only way." Dante grinned before shooting a significant glance at a nearby pylon. "Jesus, Quistis told me you were supposed to be smart."

"I get it." Seifer nodded after a few seconds of contemplation. "Keep them busy mate. I'll need a couple of minutes."

Dante stepped out in front of a cyborg and pumped three rounds from his AK into its chest from point blank range. The cyborg was less than impressed and he backhanded Dante hard enough to throw him nearly twenty feet. The vampire hit the ground raising dust but he had another plan in mind. He ripped open a bag he'd taken from the armoury and hurled a flash bang grenade at the cyborg. It exploded in the cyborgs face and it staggered backwards. Dante got to his feet and allowed his face to morph to his demonic game face. The cyborg advanced but Dante was unconcerned.

"Okay robot boy," He growled baring his fangs. "You've had your fun. Do you know what's it's time for now?"

Dante hurtled forwards and slammed hard into the cyborg, his momentum taking them both to the floor. Dante was up first and he honoured the cyborg with a rapid fire double handed to the face. The cyborg shoved him back but Dante came right back to the attack, most likely shattering the cyborgs jaw with a savage upwards kick. The cyborg pulled out a knife and lunged but Dante sidestepped the blow and then bent over backwards to avoid a second thrust. Then he kicked the cyborgs knife out of its hand and grabbing the cyborg by its riot clothing nutted it in the face. Then he scooped the knife up and held it by the blade before he tossed it towards the cyborg.

"That was sloppy." He growled before adopting a combat stance and eyeing up a sawn off double barrelled shotgun that a prison guard had dropped. "Have another go."

The cyborg didn't waste any time charging forwards and knocking Dante off his feet. He hit the ground with the cyborg on top. The cyborg raised its knife but it hadn't pinned his arms. Dante's hands shot up and stopped the knife a few inches shy of his eye. The cyborg put its entire weight behind the blade but it wouldn't budge. Dante grinned and then squeezed the cyborgs wrists until the bone's crushed. Needless to say the cyborg dropped its knife. While it was distracted Dante curled his legs up, pressed his feet against the cyborgs chest and pushed him off. Then he scooped up the knife and sawn off. He closed the cyborg down and cut a huge gash in its chest with the knife before pushing the sawn off into the wound and emptying both barrels.

The next cyborg Dante came up against didn't suffer much better treatment. It charged at him but Dante sidestepped and grabbed the cyborg by the scruff of its neck. Then he started to spin to gain momentum. Then he let go and the cyborg rose like a rocket. Then it expired, mainly because Dante had tossed it directly into the path of the rotor blades on one of the hovering helicopters.

Seifer reached the pylon ad a dead run. If he remembered correctly he'd have to bridge the gap between the transformers to overload the pylon, create an electro-magnetic pulse and send Screamer Mountain back to the Stone Age. He guessed his rifle would conduct the charge efficiently. Seifer shot the padlock of the gate and barged it open before heading for the ladder in the centre of the pylon.

"This is a seriously bad idea." Seifer grunted as he started to climb. If he ever got out of here he'd have to devise better ways of evading the various parties after him. Seifer reached the transformers and was just figuring out where to place his gun when something hit him extremely hard and nearly knocked him from the pylon. His gun disappeared out of sight and Seifer groaned. A cyborg stood over him obviously having figured out what he was up to. Seifer kicked up knocking the cyborg a pace or two. Then he jumped to his feet and readied himself. He ducked a thunderbolt punch but the cyborg had anticipated the dodge and his knee connected solidly with Seifer's chin, knocking him down again. That said however he was still Seifer Almasy. He surged to his feet and threw himself on the cyborg. He used his legs to pin its arms and started to punch it repeatedly in the face. Seifer laughed his attack relentless not giving the cyborg any time to recover. Then a stroke of inspiration hit him. He rolled of the cyborg before lifting it bodily and slamming it back down…directly between the transformers. The resultant explosion blew Seifer off the transformer. He hit the ground and let the darkness take him.

When Seifer regained consciousness he found himself in what looked like a garage. It was empty save for Dante and a couple of dilapidated motorcycles. Seifer got slowly to his feet.

"Nice move with the pylon." Dante nodded approvingly. "Come on mate. They'll look for us in here eventually."

"Where's everyone else?" Seifer asked as he staggered over to one of the motorcycles and sat astride it. He bounced the suspension and immediately decided the rough terrain would probably shatter his spine.

"They didn't make it." Dante replied as he sat astride another bike and kick started the engine. "Now I hope your appetite for danger isn't satisfied yet."

"Why?" Seifer asked uneasily.

"Because the only way to get outside the perimeter is up there." Dante pointed up a ramp that led to the second floor of the building they were in. There was a smashed window facing them. Dante waved jauntily to Seifer and then accelerated up the ramp and out the window. Seifer rolled his eyes and followed. As he shot out the window, he cleared the outer perimeter wall and slammed down onto an icy road. Dante had already doubled the limit and his reasoning became clear as they were being pursued by motorcycles, trucks and a helicopter gun ship. Seifer ground his teeth together. Why would they go to this sort of trouble for two prisoners? Maybe the fact that Dante was allegedly a double murderer and armed robber, not to mention his own track record had something to do with it.

Suddenly a flatbed truck roared out of nowhere ahead of Dante and Seifer. Mounted on the back was fifty calibre general purpose machine gun and judging by the way the gunner was spraying bullets at them they had no shortage of ammo. Dante crouched low over his handlebars and maxed his bike. Judging by the frankly alarming engine note the because he was putting it through couldn't last. He slid alongside the truck and immediately jumped through the drivers open window.

"Beg your pardon mate." He said pleasantly. "I forgot to knock." Two punches later the driver was hurled from the vehicle. Dante violently jerked the wheel and as the vehicle jack knifed wildly, resulting in the gunner being thrown off as well. Dante slowed slightly to allow Seifer to climb aboard. "Get on the gun, and light 'em up!"

Seifer was slightly surprised to find himself taking orders but Dante clearly knew his stuff so he shrugged and pulled back the action and opening fire. He honoured the bikes and trucks with a long burst before switching his aim to the helicopter. It swerved to avoid the bullets and launched a rocket that narrowly missed. Seifer cursed and fired again, this time putting several bullets on its underside. However, judging by the ease with which it shook off the hits it was armour plated. Seifer let out a torrent of obscenities before blowing a truck off the road with another sustained burst.

"Dante we don't have a lot of time." Seifer said as he kept firing. "They're gaining on us and that chopper's armoured."

"We don't have to outrun them for long!" Dante yelled back as he accelerated. "Just long enough."

The Ragnarok had started coming in when Dante and Seifer had made it over the prison wall. It's rules of engagement were very strict. It was only there to pick up Dante and Seifer, not engage the prison guards. If Esthar scrambled some fighters to intercept they could defend themselves but Quistis had reasoned that they probably wouldn't given that Balamb Garden was their foremost ally. The Ragnarok slid alongside the truck and it's ramp lowered. Two SeeD's were waiting, connected to the Ragnarok by harnesses and ropes.

"Jump Seifer!" Dante screamed at him. "Go for it! Jump!"

Seifer honoured their pursuers with a final burst of machine gun fire before taking a running jump. He wouldn't have made it but one of the SeeD's managed to grab him and haul him aboard. Seifer turned to watch Dante leap but to his horror Dante was pulling away from the Ragnarok.

"Your turn Dante!" Seifer roared over the roar of the engines. "Come on, jump for it."

"It's too hot!" The pilot of the Ragnarok announced over the intercom. "We won't survive this landing!"

"Come on Dante!" Seifer screamed. "Are you insane? Think about what we talked about. Freedom!"

"Freedom for you Seifer!" Dante yelled. "Freedom for you, but not for me. Get out of here and give Squall hell from me."

With that Dante, floored the accelerator and pulled away, pursued by dozens of motorcycles, trucks and a helicopter gun ship. Seifer watched him disappear and then he saw the helicopter loose a barrage of missiles. He shook his head regretfully as the Ragnarok's ramp closed.

"Let's get out of here."

* * *

**Author Commentary: It's my twenty third birthday today, so a birthday review wouldn't go amiss. I told you Seifer would be worth the wait and believe em you haven't seen anything yet. I'm not going to lie, a great deal of this chapter was based off the level "Vorkuta" from Call of Duty; Black Ops. However I did change Dante's fate halfway through, so rest in peace Dante. As for the character of Barret, I have _absolutely _no idea where he came from. The next chapter will cover the fallout of Dante's death and it will also show good and evil beginning to square up. The end of Doomsday Part One is coming up soon. You'll also see more of Rinoa and Mika and you'll see Squall and Alexander put their plans into action. Edea will also play a much larger part in upcoming chapters and she'll help determine one of Alexander's fundamental weaknesses. Don't think it'll be easy to take him or Squall down. There were only two people who knew exactly how Alexander worked, and they were Swift and Dante, one of whom is now dead. I would like to thank all my readers and reviewers, especially Dee and Bebedora. Thank you so much for your continual support. Until next time…**

**~Ally Todd**


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty Six: Fire Cross**

Mika and Rinoa were currently sitting in a train compartment on the way from Balamb to Timber. Rinoa was reading a book and occasionally listening to some music on her MP3. In contrast Mika was simply staring out the window, idly twirling a stiletto knife, seemingly lost in thought. To say Mika had been unaffected by his brothers death would be pretty accurate. When he'd been told he'd simply shrugged, accepted it and moved on to his next job. If Rinoa was being totally honest she didn't think it was particularly healthy to bottle up his feelings. Either that, or Mika was considerably more hardened than anyone Rinoa had ever met. Still she felt obligated to say something.

"Mika," She began timidly as he locked his mesmerising gaze on her. "Are you okay? I'm really sorry about your brother."

"It was his choice." Mika replied simply. "He knew the risks and I doubt he left this world without any regrets, short of not driving a redwood through Alexander Obsidian's chest when he had the chance."

"Are you going to be okay though?" Rinoa pressed, thinking as she did so that she could probably count the number of time she'd seen Mika exhibit a discernible emotion on one hand. "You're all alone now. You've got no family."

"It didn't kill me when Dante went AWOL for six months." Mika said evenly. "I'm not about to whine about it because he's not coming back this time around. I'm not sure if you ever noticed but Dante and I were never particularly close. I didn't want him dead but I knew it would happen eventually. Everything he did convinced me he had one of two things. At best, a pathological need for attention and at worst, a psychotic death wish."

"He was still your brother." Rinoa attempted trying to sound reproachful. "Does that not count for anything?"

"If you're waiting for me to curl up and have a good cry you'll be waiting for a while." Mika bit off. "Trust me Rinoa, wherever Dante is now he's probably screaming himself hoarse at me to finish what he started, or, knowing him to jump you and get it over with."

"That does sound a lot like him." Rinoa nodded. "I happen to know a little something about losing your whole family so if you ever need to talk about things I'm always ready to listen."

"I forgot you're not on the best of terms with your old man. Throw in your beau turning into a remorseless killing machine and we're practically kindred spirits." Mika grimaced. "Funny old world isn't it?"

"Hilarious." Rinoa deadpanned before deciding a subject change might be in order. "These guys you're going to meet in Timber are close to the only family I've had for a good portion of my life. Fair warning though, they've got a whole protective big brother thing going on when it comes to yours truly, so don't take it personally if they're not overjoyed to see you."

"Oh believe me I'm used to it." Mika grunted. "Even the circles I run in are a little wary of me. Occupational hazard of being a vampire I suppose. You must remind me to send a thank you card to Swift. I tell you once this thing with Alexander and Squall is over I'm going to have it out with Swift, partly on Dante's behalf."

"Don't do anything stupid Mika." Rinoa advised. "You and I both know that Swift could rip you limb from limb without tensing a muscle. He's dangerous and you shouldn't offer yourself up as a lamb for a slaughter."

"What do you know about vampires?" Mika asked rhetorically. "When you first become a vampire your urges can be very hard to handle, especially the one concerning blood. For some vampires it can take twenty years or so to get the urge to feed under control. It took me about seventeen years and in that time I killed a fair few people. I can't escape my share of the blame but their blood is on Swift's hand as well. He may act like a typical gentlemen with a sense of honour and fair play but he's not the kind of guy who let's his conscience keep him awake at night and someone needs to put him right on a few things. Dante's dead, so it can't be him. So it falls to his little brother."

"Dante was a boor." Rinoa stated before holding up her hands. "I'm sorry but he was and you know it. You don't have to be like him as well."

"I think I do actually." Mika said. "Everyone is on this planet for a reason and I think my reason has something to do with the fact that my last name is Skyle. I can't say I'm dancing a jig about it but I'm stuck with it. Don't pity me because I just lost my brother. These things happen. It's Quistis I feel sorry for."

"Quistis?" Rinoa echoed uncomprehendingly. "Why's that then?"

"She had a thing with Dante." Mika explained casually. "You can't just write off that intense a relationship like that. If you want my personal opinion I think she's feeling a bit guilty. She never believed Dante's theories about Squall and now that they've been borne out and Dante's dead she feels guilty about not believing him. Now, she can't make it right and I doubt that knowledge will do her any favours."

"Quistis is tough." Rinoa contradicted him. "At first glance you might think of her as your typical blonde bombshell, plenty in the way of beauty and sex appeal but very little when it comes to brains. Quistis is hands down one of the smartest people I've ever met and she's got a spine of steel. She's accustomed to the tough side of life and maybe she feels bad about not believing Dante but Quistis is too focused and driven to dwell on the mistakes in her past."

"I've seen the effect my brother has on woman." Mika grunted stubbornly. "I'm not saying Quistis is off to top herself but she'll miss him. Quistis doesn't strike me as the type to jump into bed with the first lunkhead that comes along. She most likely had some sort of attraction to him and you can't just turn that off like a switch."

"I'm impressed." Rinoa answered reluctantly. "That was almost profound and it actually made sense."

"Rational thought, it's an acquired taste." Mika quipped grinning smugly at her and propping his feet up on the table. "Let me tell you something Rinoa, and feel free to relay this to your friends. You shouldn't feel sorry for Dante, going out the way he did. He would've wanted to go out fighting. He's not the type to die in bed surrounded by fat grandkids. He was my brother and I could always work him out. Going out in a "bloody blaze of glory" as he would put it is pretty close to his equivalent of winning the lottery."

"How did you put up with him for eighty odd years?" Rinoa asked.

"Long arduous hours of practise," Mika replied. "Dante was a flawed individual it's true but he wasn't without his honourable traits. He always fought for what he believed in and he wasn't known for bowing to the whims of ancient, sociopathic vampires though that trait could probably be called suicidal instead of honourable. In all honesty I think the best thing about him dying is Alexander is not going to be pleased, because I get the impression Alexander wanted to kill him personally."

"How is that a good thing?" Rinoa enquired. "I get the impression Alexander is the type to lash out when things go wrong for him."

"There is that I suppose," Mika conceded. "But he's angry and when people get angry they frequently make mistakes. We identify and exploit these mistakes and we might make it through this with a minimum of collateral damage. We can but hope."

* * *

In the days when he'd been a cadet Seifer's favourite place in Garden was the gym. He'd always preferred to work out in the small hours of the morning, around two or three primarily because there were precious few distractions at that time, but also because he wouldn't have to fight over equipment. He strolled in, dressed in a grey tank top and black sweatpants. He headed over to a rack and seized the heaviest set of weights. Then he lay down on a mat and started to pump the weights up and down. In Screamer Mountain, manual labour and regular brawls had kept him in pretty good shape, but not good enough shape to take Squall on.

As Seifer worked out his thoughts wandered before coming to rest firmly on his fellow escapee Dante. Seifer wouldn't admit it to anyone, but on a personal level he'd understood Dante and liked him. Dante clearly had a colourful past and Seifer was one of the world foremost experts on chequered pasts. Seifer didn't have a lot of experience with losing comrades but he'd always got the impression that Dante would've preferred to go out fighting. For some reason he couldn't quite fathom the person he felt bad for in the whole sorry state of affairs was Quistis. She'd always been good at concealing her emotions but Seifer could tell that she was nothing short of devastated. That in itself was curious. The Quistis Seifer remembered was far too involved in her job to make time for romance.

"Seifer Almasy." A voice said right behind Seifer. Seifer set the weights aside before leaping to his feet and turning around.

"Who wants to know?" Seifer demanded looking this man over. Seifer couldn't be sure but he didn't think this guy was a member of Balamb Garden. There was something off about this guy but Seifer couldn't put his finger on it. "Who are you?"

"My name is Swift Obsidian." The man replied, smiling at some private joke. "I'm sure Dante mentioned me."

"He did funnily enough." Seifer growled. "He told me the whole story about what you did to him and his brother. He also gave me a message to give to you if he didn't make it out of Screamer Mountain."

"I surmised as much." Swift grimaced. "It's fair to say what I did to Dante was wrong, and he never let me forget it. If Mika is anything like his brother he won't let me forget it either."

"Do you honestly think you should be allowed to forget what you did?" Seifer took an aggressive step forwards. "Believe me I know everything there is to know about living with a truckload of guilt for past misdeeds. As for the message Dante wanted me to give you…" Seifer drew back a fist and punched Swift square in the face, dropping him to the floor.

"Okay I deserved that." Swift got back to his feet and laughed. "That said, your technique was a little sloppy don't you think? If you want to stand a chance against Squall you'll need to get a lot better. Squall is a threat and in order to neutralize him you'll need to be at the very top of your game."

"That's why I'm here working out." Seifer grunted. "I don't know if you've ever been in Screamer Mountain but it's not the easiest place to keep yourself in peak physical condition. Who knows when we'll be going into action against Squall? I need to get to my absolute best as soon as possible."

"I think we need to have a little chat don't you?" Swift sat and motioned Seifer down. "When this thing goes off we're probably going to be working together. I guess Quistis told you that the guy behind this is Alexander Obsidian, my younger brother. Where Alexander is, Squall will be also."

"And you're telling me this why?" Seifer enquired.

"I just want to be clear about where we stand." Swift told him icily. "I'll watch your back but I'll require the same in return. If you think you can finish Dante's grudge against me, I advise against it. Can I trust you to watch my back and not do anything stupid?"

"Oh I'll watch your back." Seifer grunted. "I'll have to so I can work out where to place my knife."

"I was hoping you wouldn't say something like that." Swift growled before grabbing Seifer by the neck and slamming him against one of the walls with incredible speed. "Alright Seifer, you listen and listen good. This is serious. What is happening here makes the Second Sorceress War look like child's play. If we want to come through this alive we'll have to trust each other implicitly."

"Trust is earned." Seifer choked out. "It's not just given out." In a single flicker of movement Swift slammed him against the opposite wall.

"Let's be honest here Seifer." Swift growled. "In the eyes of the world you're less than trust worthy. Right now, I'm the only person willing and able to trust you absolutely. In order to do that, I need you to trust me as well. We both want the same things." He released Seifer. "So Seifer, can you trust me?" With another lighting fast movement a handgun was in Swift's hand and was pointed directly at Seifer's heart. "Or are we going to have a problem?"

* * *

Mika wasn't about to admit it but he was impressed by the Forest Owl's operation in Timber. Their base was an old railway locomotive that ran on the mainly disused secondary railroads in and around Timber. The locomotive had undergone extensive refitting, giving it living quarters for the half dozen members as well as a conference room and a small but well stocked armoury.

Rinoa's fellow founding members, Zone and Watts had greeted Mika with a mixture of curiosity, suspicion and badly concealed dislike. Mika however was unconcerned; after all he was used to it. His main mission in life was to protect Rinoa by all means and he'd politely informed them that if they hindered him in anyway he'd have no qualms about removing the hindrance, if necessary, with the use of extreme violence.

"This is my room." Rinoa said as she stopped by a door. "I guess you'll want to come in, in order to protect me and all."

"I would now you mention it," Mika nodded. "Train or not it's a dwelling of sorts so you'll have to invite me in. If it makes you feel any better, or safer I can kip out here."

"It's okay Mika, I trust you." Rinoa said smiling at him. "Would you like to come in Mika?"

"I would." Mika nodded before he came to an appalled halt as he beheld the colour scheme of Rinoa's room. "Jesus Harold Christ. This is _very _pink. What were you thinking?"

It was at that point a German Shepherd emerged from a side room. It took one look at Mika before charging towards him and knocking him to the ground where it started to enthusiastically lick him. The dog paid no heed to Rinoa's orders to leave him alone so Mika eventually sat up and the dog backed off before sitting and gazing at Mika intently.

"Mika this is Angelo." Rinoa offered apologetically. "I'm sorry. I don't know what got into her. She's never that friendly."

"Dogs and vampires get on very well." Mika grunted. "No one knows for sure why that's the case. One theory is that vampires are descended from wolves, in the same way humans are descended from apes. I've heard enough to know that's not true but that's irrelevant. For some reason all canines regard vampires as family." Mika reached out and scratched Angelo behind the ears. The dog responded by whining in satisfaction. "She's lovely."

"I'm sure she likes you to." Rinoa observed as Mika pulled out a bandana and used it to wipe his face clean of dog saliva. "Should I get Zone to put another bed in here?"

"No problems." Mika unzipped his rucksack and pulled out a sleeping bag and what looked like the components for a camp bed. He unpacked the sleeping bag and assembled the camp bed with the practised ease of someone who'd done it many times before. "You've got no problem with a boy sharing your room right?"

"You're here to protect me from an ancient vampire." Rinoa shrugged. "I'm sure I'll be fine, though prepare to lose several appendages if you try any funny business."

"Don't worry Rinoa, I'm not my brother." Mika said evenly. "I don't jump everything female at every available opportunity. I won't deny that you're easy on the eyes but I'm easily intelligent enough to see nothing will ever happen."

"Dante told me that you've occasionally become involved with people you're supposed to protect." The words were out before Rinoa could stop them and by the way Mika stiffened Rinoa immediately regretted speaking. After a second Mika relaxed.

"Thanks Dante." He muttered. "I can tell you one thing Rinoa. I might miss a few of my brother's characteristics but his wide open trap isn't one of them. He was right though, I did become involved with a couple of my principals and it didn't end well. You can rest assured it won't happen again."

"I hope not." Rinoa said. "I happen to be of the opinion that Squall can be saved, and when I figure out how, we'll pick up where we left off."

"Good for you." Mika tried to sound sincere but internally he was fairly sure that this affair would end in tears one way or another. Balamb Garden were definitely interested in killing Alexander and capturing Squall, dead or alive. Mika hadn't voice his concerns but judging by the colourful history between Squall and Balamb Gardens latest recruit it looked very much as if they'd like to take Squall dead. Mika sighed and removed a silver hip flask from his rucksack. He took a mouthful.

"Can I have some?" Rinoa asked him hopefully. "I seriously need a drink, the higher the alcohol content the better."

"It's not alcohol, it's called O positive." Mika replied before catching the sickened look Rinoa was shooting his way. "Vampire, remember?"

"It's nothing personal but I'd prefer if you could go outside when you feed." Rinoa said somewhat shamefacedly. "I will admit that I trust you, and that your whole enhanced strength and speed is pretty cool but you're still a vampire and I can't really handle the blood thing."

"No problem." Mika grunted as he rooted through his rucksack and located a small bottle of tequila. "You want booze, here." He handed the bottle to her. "Keep it. Call it a house warming present. As for now, I need to get some sleep. Come to think of it you look pretty knackered as well. The tequila will help you sleep."

"Thanks." Rinoa nodded. "I'll just go and get changed." She gestured at the side room Angelo had emerged from. "That's my en suite. Feel free to use it whenever you want."

A few minutes later Rinoa emerged from her en suite and walked over to Mika. She went up on tip toes and kissed him quickly on the cheek. Mika tried not to let the surprise on his face show.

"Good night Rinoa." He said in a slightly constricted voice before climbing into his sleeping bag and collapsing onto his camp bed.

"Good night Mika." Rinoa answered as she climbed into bed. "Let me ask one thing. Do you snore?"

"I don't know." Mika admitted. "It's been a while since anyone has been in a position to let me know. At least Dante isn't your bodyguard. When he snores you'd swear a foghorn had just kicked off."

"And the award for creative analogy of the year goes to the guy in the sleeping bag on the camp bed." Rinoa muttered. When Mika didn't reply Rinoa rolled over to look at him and raised an eyebrow. Mika was lying on his side, facing away from her and he was completely motionless. "Oh come on. No one falls asleep that quickly."

* * *

The following Friday, Seifer signed out a battered but famously reliable pick up truck from the Garden motor pool and headed into Balamb to get some food. It hadn't been an easy week, to say the very least. Seifer had been allotted a single dorm room and the door had been tagged with some colourful insults along the lines of "Sorceress' brainwashed cabana boy". Everywhere he'd gone he'd been the subject of whispers and hostile glares.

Seifer swung the pick up into a parking space before letting out a growl of frustration and banging his fist against the steering wheel. He guessed that sitting around beating up the car wasn't the best course of action but in lieu of any better ideas he'd take it. He fished a small bottle of vodka out of his jacket pocket. Alcohol was technically prohibited in Garden but the staff turned a blind eye provided the drinkers didn't get absolutely plastered. Shortly before the Ultimecia Affair, Raijin had started up a black market in spirits and Seifer had been his biggest customer. It had (inevitably) resulted in Seifer engaging in many a drunken escapade that he probably would've found funny had Zell not caught each and every one on camcorder and posted them on the Garden web site.

Seifer unscrewed the top of his bottle and took a mouthful, allowing the fiery liquid to run down his throat and warm him from the inside. Seifer cupped his face in his hands and rested his forehead on the steering wheel while he contemplated the turn his life had taken. He obviously looked rather pitiful as someone rapped on the window. Seifer looked up to see a young man looking at him with a concerned expression in his face.

"You alright?" He asked his voice slightly muffled through the glass. Seifer didn't reply, slightly floored by encountering one person who evidently had no idea who he was. The man obviously misread Seifer's lack of an answer and opened the door. "Are you all right?"

Seifer simply stared out at him before letting out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob.

"What is it?" The guy enquired, leaning into the truck.

"I'm okay." Seifer said once he'd gotten a hold of himself. "I'm fine. Really. Thanks." He pulled the door closed before gesturing to let the man know he really was fine. The man headed for the public toilets while Seifer started his engine before he noticed two rough looking men heading after the younger man. They were acting shifty and looking around. Seifer turned the engine off and got out before heading after them.

When Seifer opened the door and stepped inside what was obviously a mugging was well underway. The young man was slammed against the wall and his nose was bleeding. Seifer cleared his throat and the two muggers looked up.

"Why are you doing that?" Seifer enquired softly.

"What are you?" One of the muggers sneered dismissively. "His girlfriend?"

"I want you to leave him alone." Seifer said, moving forward and walking into the bathroom properly. The muggers exchanged looks before the taller one made an aggressive move towards Seifer who rapidly backed up and adopted a combat stance, fists clenched with his feet apart and centre of gravity low.

"Ooh," One of the muggers cooed before moving towards Seifer again. "Fighting queen eh?"

"Piss off!" The other mugger laughed before grabbing his moaning victim and slugging him in the guts. There was a choking sound behind him and he wheeled around to see his friend, spluttering and in Seifer's grasp. Seifer had one arm locked around his throat and the other hand pressed against the back of his head. The mugger tried to free himself to no avail.

"I'll break his neck." Seifer threatened.

The mugger raised his fists and moved towards Seifer who simply used his friend as a human shield. After a few moments of stand off Seifer released the man but shoved him into his friend. They both quickly disentangled themselves but Seifer was quicker and kicked one in the ribs, knocking him backwards before throwing a right cross at the other that nearly took his head from his shoulders. The man he'd kicked lunged forwards. It would've been a good punch had it made contact but Seifer intercepted the fist and smashed his elbow into the man's temple, giving his brain a right old rattling. He collapsed, out cold but then Seifer was grabbed from behind by the other man who'd recovered faster than Seifer had anticipated. He however took less than a second to free himself before doubling the man up with a punch to the gut before kneeing him in the face and then throwing him bodily into one of the stalls. His head hit the floor with a hollow thunk, knocking him out completely.

"You in SeeD?" The young man asked Seifer as Seifer drove him down the high street. When Seifer didn't reply the man smiled. "That'll be a yes then. Only people who aren't say they are. I guess it's comforting to know we get something for our tax money. Look, I really don't think I need a hospital."

"You sure?" Seifer asked.

"Yeah I'll be absolutely fine." The man smiled. "Thanks for helping me. There are not a lot of people who'd do that."

"You'd be surprised what some people can do when they want to." Seifer replied evenly. "I know I've been surprised by people doing things for me in my time, without asking for anything. Pity I had a nasty habit of throwing it back in their faces."

"Well no one's perfect." The man replied, sounding genuinely sympathetic. "I've made mistakes but you helped me out. Makes me rethink my opinion on humanity." He pointed. "This is my stop."

* * *

**Author Commentary: Okay much exposition in this chapter but not a great deal of action (Seifer's intervention in a mugging notwithstanding). There's a reason for this. It's called the lull before the storm. There will be a great deal of action and mayhem in upcoming chapter as well as what I think is possibly my favourite plot device. There will also be romance, major league angst and (I've been holding onto this since the beginning) another death. As for Dante, I know he's dead but he's still a highly important character so there will be more fallout from his death, especially where Seifer and Quistis are concerned. As for Mika and Rinoa there friendship will start to deepen but it's not a romantic relationship, it's a friendship so I advise all Squinoa fans to put down the torches and pitchforks. My favourite thing about nearing the end is the fact that you'll see Swift at his absolute best. He's got plans for his little brother and they don't involve hitting him with various weapons until he stops moving oh no. All I can say is that there's someone out there Alexander has every reason to fear. The end is nigh, though in all fairness it's only the end of Part One. I'm going to seriously ramp it up for Part Two. As ever thanks go out to my readers and reviewers, Dee and Bebedora chief among them. If Carlsberg did reviews they still wouldn't be as good as you guys. Thank you, so, so much.**

**~Ally Todd**


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty Seven: Battleship Island**

**Deling City, 1838**

It was Christmas Eve in Deling City, the capital of the Republic of Galbadia. The city was so named as Galbadia had been ruled by the Deling family since it broke away from its neighbour, the Dollet Dukedom. There was snow on the ground but despite the cold, the city was as busy as ever, the only change was the warm cloaks, hats and gloves most of the populace were wearing. Choirs were singing carols, each seemingly attempting to be louder and more out of tune than the last. Despite the cold and wet night everyone was in pretty good spirits as was customary of this time of the year. Well, nearly everyone.

A young man, dressed in a modest black and white suit stumbled down the street, looking over his shoulder, fear evident on his face. He started to half run, knocking into people in his haste, though he paid no heed to their complaints, speeding up all the time and looking behind him, his breath ragged. He passed a choir singing "Silent Night" in a way that succeeded they were suffering from a violent strain of laryngitis but barely looked at them. He was passing an alley when suddenly two arms shot out from within and bundled him onto the snow covered cobbles.

"Why Daniel," The owner of the arms said in a deceptively cheerful and cultivated voice. "Where are you going?"

"You!" Daniel replied, the fear on his face changing abruptly to full blown terror as he stared up at the man standing over him. "You're not human."

"Not of late no." The man said stepping into the light. He was dressed in an expensive suit, thick cloak trimmed with mink fur and a velvet waistcoat. His long brown hair was immaculately groomed and pulled back in a smart ponytail, reaching the middle of his back. His face was however at odds with the rest of his appearance. It was obscenely chiselled, almost demonic with hollowed cheeks and an exceptionally pronounced brow. His eyes were ordinarily brown but now they glowed blood red in the gloom of the alley.

"What do you want?" Daniel said, now practically sobbing with terror as he cowered before the man.

"Well as it happens Daniel I'm hungry," The man said conversationally. "And seeing as you're in my debt so much already…"

"P…please I can't." Daniel protested risking a glance up into the man's eyes. There was no mercy in them.

"A man playing at cards should either have a natural intelligence or a great deal of money and you're sadly lacking in both!" The man seized Daniel by the lapels and yanked him violently to his feet baring his teeth. "So I'll take my winnings my own way."

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want," Daniel whimpered. "He maketh me lie down in green pastures…"

"Daniel!" The man shook him roughly, silencing the prayer. "Be of good cheer. It's Christmas." With that he roared and pinned Daniel to the alley wall before pushing his head to one side, baring his neck. Daniel struggled but it was futile, his assailant being far too strong. He continued to struggle but the man simply tore into Daniel's neck with his teeth, rupturing his jugular vein. Daniel's struggles relaxed before his body was thrown callously to the ground.

Gaston wiped the blood from around his mouth as his face transformed back to his classically handsome, human guise. He took one last look back at Daniel before striding off humming "Hark the Herald Angels Sing".

* * *

Alexander's mobile base of operations was a dilapidated, slightly rusty whaler. Personally speaking Alexander didn't like whalers but he'd taken ownership of it when he'd personally locked the previous owners in their own deep freezer. Having a mobile base was helpful as it greatly reduced the chances of one of the many people Alexander had rubbed up the wrong way mounting an effective strike against him. He'd even refitted the engines with new models so the whaler was now faster than most powerboats. Alexander cut the engines as Squall entered the bridge.

"Okay before we get to what you called me up here for," Squall barked as he stormed into the bridge. "Would you like to tell me why exactly all your henchmen are vampire hunters?"

"Who says that they're anything of the sort?" Alexander enquired smiling an infuriating smile.

"I do." Squall snapped. "Stakes, crossbows, wooden bullets and automatics. It doesn't take a genius you know. Why are you employing people who I'm fairly sure would like to kill you."

"My men don't want to kill me." Alexander replied placidly. "They know that they're on the winning side. You see, when you're around for as long as I am you make enemies and a great deal of them are vampires. I can't be bothered hunting them all down so I let these guys do it for me. Now to business." He handed Squall a pair of binoculars.

"If you'd care to focus on the object at twelve-o-clock." Alexander said. "Tell me Squall, have you seen that location before?"

Squall focused on the distant object. It seemed to be a floating rubbish tip but a more lengthy inspection revealed it to be some sort of man-made island. A central, vaguely circular island was surrounded by others and despite the fact that the sight was dimly familiar Squall couldn't remember where he'd seen it before. He looked to Alexander who was awaiting his answer.

"No I can't say I have." Squall murmured. "I think I'd remember."

"Really?" Alexander enquired. "That is odd because you were here four years ago to acquire the services of the Guardian Force Bahamut. I feel so insulted Squall. Why must you lie to me?"

"I'm not lying to you!" Squall roared, his temper snapping. "I've never seen this place before! I'd remember. It's a man-made island in the middle of nowhere. I would remember."

"I believe you Squall." Alexander said with an alarming quick change of tack. "You see, I knew you were here four years ago. This location is very important to me, and I couldn't have SeeD or Garden sniffing around so I cast a little spell to wipe it from your memories."

"What?" Squall yelled before grabbing Alexander by his lapels and pinning him to the nearest console. "What gives you the right to rape my memories? Who do you think you are?"

Alexander sighed before grabbing Squall's wrists and forcing them off him. Then with a single violent movement he bundled Squall to the floor. Before Squall could react he found himself staring down the barrel of a large Desert Eagle handgun. Alexander cocked the weapon as he stared down at Squall.

"That was very unprofessional Squall." He growled. "You do that again and I will shoot you through the mouth. That'll take out the back of the brain and if you live, you'll be paralysed below the neck, permanently. Now I can do what I need to do with or without you. Personally, I'd prefer to do it with you." He extended an arm to Squall, who hesitated

"Do what?" Squall growled as he allowed Alexander to pull him back to his feet. "You say you're responsible for opening the door to let the real me out but you haven't told me jack shit when I ask why?"

"All in good time Squall." Alexander clapped him on the back. "All in good time. For now however I'll give you some information. "That little island out there is actually a Deep Sea Research Centre, known as "Battleship Island". I don't know who built is but I do know that they researched Guardian Forces and magic. I also believe that they may have developed some sort of super weapon. I intend to find out what."

"What sort of weapon?" Squall enquired.

"I don't know." Alexander admitted. "What I do know is that it's the type of thing that should help me dispense with anyone brave or stupid enough to oppose me, or to hinder my plans."

"I'm a little tired of this ambiguity." Squall snapped. "I'm here and I'm helping you. I do not appreciate being kept out of the loop."

"When I said all in good time I meant it." Alexander said ominously. "I can give you some information that you'll like. Earlier this week, Dante Skyle was killed in Esthar. I don't know the specifics but I know it's true."

"Now you mention it that is music to my ears." Squall grinned. "Good riddance. The guy was really starting to bug me in that special I-want-to-shove-something-pointy-and-wooden-through-his-heart way."

"Personally I wanted to kill him myself." Alexander sighed regretfully. "But he's dead. That's the main thing."

"It's certainly good news." Squall stated before a grin of pure evil spread across his face like oil on water. "I wonder how Quistis is taking the news that her beloved vampire cabana boy is no longer with us."

"Who gives a damn?" Alexander said before smiling again. "Now I seem to recall you saying you know a little something something about where I might be able to get me a Sorceress?"

"You still haven't told me why you're so interested in getting one." Squall persisted.

"I tell you what," Alexander grinned. "If you can get me the aforementioned Sorceress I will tell you everything you need to know. First things first, we have a few things to attend to in the vicinity of Battleship Island."

* * *

Quistis at this moment was sitting on her bed, lost in thought when there was suddenly a forceful rapping on her door. Quistis sighed. She knew only one person who could knock on a door and nearly reduce it to splinters either because she didn't know her own strength or due to her utterly insatiable enthusiasm. She called out to her visitor.

"It's open Selphie."

As she'd predicted, Selphie bounced in with enthusiasm that no other pregnant woman could ever exhibit. Selphie halted by the foot of the bed and her smile shrunk by at least a couple of molars when she noticed the despondent look on Quistis face and her equally crushed looking posture. Selphie immediately jumped onto the bed next to her friend.

"Whats up?" Selphie chirped as she studied Quistis' face for a reaction. "Is it what happened with Squall that's bothering you, or is it the fact that you've been reduced to asking Seifer or help."

"It's not that." Quistis said, taking a breath wondering how Selphie would react to the truth. "I was just thinking about Dante. He was right Selphie, about Squall. He was right and I never had any chance to make it right before he got himself killed."

"You can't blame yourself for what happened in Screamer Mountain." Selphie replied. "I don't know Seifer too well but it was only the course of action open to us, breaking him out. Dante knew that and he was well aware of the risks."

"I don't blame myself for what happened to him." Quistis sighed. "The problem is I found out what he was and I didn't even try to deal with it. When we were together I liked him, but then when I discovered that something happened to him, that wasn't his fault I just chucked him on the scrap heap like it didn't matter. Now, I don't get the chance to apologise for the way I treated him."

"You shouldn't be torturing yourself over this." Selphie told her. "You'd be hard put to find someone who thinks you overreacted when you found out that your boyfriend was a monster."

"It doesn't matter to me what anyone else thinks." Quistis grunted before tapping a finger against her skull. "It's what I think that counts in here and I think I screwed my boyfriend and then proceeded to kick him while he was down. I don't care what Squall thought of them, I shouldn't have behaved that way towards Dante, regardless of whether he was a vampire or not."

"It sounds like you're over thinking it." Selphie said soothingly. "Come on Quistis, you wouldn't be taking this so hard unless…oh my God. That's it isn't it? You were in love with him."

"No I wasn't." Quistis snapped before reconsidering. "I don't know is I was. I had strong feelings for him but whether or not I loved him? The jury's still out I'm afraid."

"There's no shame in it." Selphie reasoned. "Lot's of people lose themselves in love and do stupid things. Why do you think they write songs about it?"

"You don't think I'm stupid." Quistis asked Selphie.

"Are you having a laugh?" The brunette exclaimed. "You're the smartest person I know. Living in the past is not a good idea in my opinion but you were close to Dante so I think you ought to grieve for him and then move on. It's okay if you loved him. He did a lot of good and it was pretty obvious that he had some pretty strong feelings for you. It's also okay if you didn't, because he was still a vampire."

"That's the point though." Quistis said exasperatedly. "Dante and Mika didn't choose to become vampires. That was something that was done to them, funnily enough by one of our new allies."

"If we can work with Seifer who tried to kill us multiple times we can work with Swift who has an overdeveloped bite reflex." Selphie reasoned. "I can't pretend to understand what you're going through but I can tell you what we're going to do about it."

"If you say miniature golf then you're going out the window headfirst." Quistis said warningly.

"Nothing that arduous." Selphie said, standing up an attempting a purposeful expression. "We're going to find Alexander Obsidian, put him in the ground and save Squall. Now are you with me or are you going to sit around and mope some more. I'm prepared to bet that wherever Dante is right now, he's incandescent with rage because you're not finishing what you started."

* * *

Alexander and Squall were currently standing in the entry room to the Deep Sea Research Centre. When Squall had first been here there had been a glowing blue power core in the middle of the room. In its place however was a jagged hole with a large clump of vegetation growing through it. Alexander was armed with a slender katana sword sheathed across his back and his Desert Eagle tucked into his waistband while Squall was carrying the Lion Heart and had a backup knife up his left sleeve and a pistol in an ankle holster.

"Once we're down there, do exactly as I say." Alexander said before taking a running jump through the hole. "It's rather filthy down here."

"Always on the move." Squall sighed before jumping down after Alexander; landing ankle deep in God knows what. The lights were dead so Alexander pulled out a small but powerful Maglite. He crouched to study a nearby console.

"It says we have a limited amount of air to use descending into the Deep Sea Deposit as we'll need a fair bit to open the bulkheads." He announced. "I don't breathe, and I'm guessing you're an average breather so we'll have plenty." Alexander did a few mental calculations. "I'm guessing we'll have a bottom time of around twenty minutes."

"Are you ever going to tell me what exactly is supposed to be down there?" Squall said firmly. "I'm not keen on walking into something I know nothing about. People who do that tend to end up dead."

"Don't worry." Alexander smiled an eerie smile. "As long as you're with me, you'll be absolutely fine. If you weren't me, then you'd be in trouble. Do as I say and you'll be okay. Understand?"

Squall didn't reply but that was apparently enough for Alexander. Alexander seized a lever to the left of the console and hauled on it, opening a door to the first level. He headed down first with Squall following. It was nearly pitch black and Alexander Maglite didn't do much so Alexander reached into his belt kit and withdrew two pairs of night vision goggles. He switched his on and handed the other pair to Squall who took them with a nod of thanks. They'd gone less than ten metres when a low growling met their ears.

"I don't like the sound of that." Squall murmured as he raised his gun blade slightly and looked around for the source of the noise.

"Just relax it's only a monster." Alexander sighed. "It's quite a good idea actually, just setting loose monsters in here to act as guard dogs. You could never train them you'd just have to wait until someone came poking around and the monsters would make sure they wouldn't stay for long. I'm guessing it's maybe Blue Dragon, or a Chimera. Maybe it's even a…"

"Grendel?" Squall suggested, raising his gun blade to a defensive position. Alexander wheeled around.

Less than ten metres away stood a very large, wilfully lethal Grendel. Fortunately it appeared to be alone which was a blessing as Grendel's tended to run in packs and if they were outnumbered things could get very complicated very fast. Squall had a few scars on his back from an unfortunate encounter with a Grendel a couple of years ago and he was very wary. By contrast Alexander was totally unconcerned. He chuckled slightly as he whipped out his Desert Eagle and flipped the safety off and pumped two shots into the Grendel before unsheathing his katana and charging like lightning. In spite of the speed of his attack the Grendel was equal to the task of defending itself. It batted Alexander aside before charging at Squall who backed up, fending it off with the Lion Heart.

As Alexander flew bodily through the air he turned his body and landed lightly on his feet before adopting a combat stance, katana at the ready. The Grendel was now caught between two of the world's foremost swordsmen and was apparently still under the delusion it'd been handed a free two course meal. Alexander twirled his katana idly and raised it high as he and Squall moved in on the Grendel which still seemed game for a rumble.

"Do you want to kill it or shall I?" Alexander called out jovially.

The Grendel stuck, lashing out backwards at Alexander with its blade-like tail. It was an enormously powerful blow and would've torn most people human or vampire apart at the waist but Alexander was not, most people and he easily blocked the blow, holding the tail back with minimal effort. Squall capitalised on the distraction by casting a Fire spell on the beast and the barrelling forwards through the flames and stabbing the Grendel in the left shoulder. It was hardly a major wound but Squall knew that the best way to deal with Grendel's was to inflict multiple trivial wounds and then pressure the beast into bleeding to death. Alexander obviously had the same thought and dealt a couple of shallow cuts across the Grendel's haunches.

The Grendel was still happy to fight. It skittered sideways and up a wall before pushing off in a powerful leap. It descended towards Squall who dodged and sliced a shallow cut across its stomach as it came down and then a second across its back. It screeched in pain and wheeled around and charged towards Alexander who pulled out his Desert Eagle and emptied the magazine into the charging beast before back flipping out of range. He grinned at Squall.

"A little something I picked up In Centra." He boasted while preening outrageously. "Like it?"

Squall cast three Fire spells in quick succession on the Grendel, giving Alexander the time he needed to reload. The Grendel bellowed and charged towards Squall who shrugged an decided he was tired of this game. Squall backed up as the Grendel thundered towards him before bracing his back against a wall and thrusting his gun blade straight out. Unable to stop in time the Grendel ran straight into it impaling itself. Squall wrestled the gun blade free before swinging it up and across, decapitating it with one blow. Its head rolled to a stop at Alexander's feet.

They moved on, methodically moving through the various floors and killing monsters as they went; ancient vampire and soulless mercenary working together to deal out exceptional levels of death and destruction. Squall noted Alexander's excellent fighting style as they continued on. If all vampires were like him Squall was seriously considering seeking some out and employing them when the time came to "deal" with Balamb Garden and everyone in it.

After a few more minutes Alexander and Squall reached a small elevator, surrounded by black and yellow warning stripes. They hopped on and Alexander pushed the button. The elevator descended into an utterly nondescript room. The only notable feature was a set of heavy steel doors. Alexander headed towards them and crouched next to a console that Squall guessed was the door controls.

"We've used nearly a quarter of the air supply, or more accurately you have." He informed Squall. "Ordinarily, that would be enough to open this door but due to being under nearly a mile of salt water the controls are buggered."

"Oh." Squall raised an eyebrow slightly. "That's not good is it?"

"Obviously." Alexander sighed. "Luckily I have prepared for such an eventuality. My method of opening the door is hardly stealthy so I suggest you prepare. There are a large number of exotic and deadly monsters on the other side." He handed Squall his Desert Eagle. As Squall took up his position levelling both his and Alexander's handguns at the door, the vampire wedged the tip off his katana between the doors and exerting all his considerable strength started to lever them open, very, very slowly.

"Oh come on." Squall grumbled. "I've got limited air here. Can't you get it open any faster?"

"Sorry," Alexander replied sounding far from it. "But you're welcome to pull on it if it'll make you feel better."

The doors were about half a metre apart when there was a deafening roar from within the cavern beyond. Alexander laughed deliriously and continued straining, wrenching the doors open. Squall tightened his grip on the guns and took a deep breath to steady him. He recognised the roar alright. Unless he was very much mistaken they'd woken up a Hexadragon, one of very few monsters that could challenge a Malboro for the title of the world's worst. Alexander exchanged a look with Squall before throwing all his considerable strength against one of the doors. The aged hinges, weakened by rust snapped and the door fell flat. Before they could enter a the Hexadragon attacked. The size of a herd of elephants and ten times as dangerous it flattened the other door as it stomped towards Squall, all six eyes glowing red with vindictive fury. Squall wasted no time an opened fire. Tough and perpetually angry it may be, even a Hexadragon couldn't ignore a stream of large calibre lead ripping into it and it reared up, bellowing in pain. It's singular purpose in life was getting at Squall and ripping him apart, but Alexander (somewhat predictably) had other ideas. As the Hexadragon emerged from the cave Alexander tapped him on the nearest leg. The Hexadragon stopped before turning towards him.

"That's not very nice." He said before leaping into the air and bringing his katana down on the Hexadragon's neck. Super strong he may have been the beasts muscular structure stood up to the blow admirably. The bale bit only about a third of the way in. Alexander wrenched it out but before he could try again he was thrown the length of the room by a tail swipe. He grimaced as he hit the wall and bounced off onto the floor. "I'll bet that's upsetting."

Squall however had a better idea. He sprinted towards the Hexadragon swinging his gun blade. The Hexadragon was taken utterly unawares by the ferocity of the attack and was forced backwards into the cave. Squall laughed his attack relentless. Every time his gun blade struck the beast he pulled the trigger. The Hexadragon lashed out blindly and more by luck than judgement sent Squall cartwheeling into a wall. It dismissed him as a threat and thundered towards Alexander.

"Don't turn your back on me." Squall growled before unleashing his finest attack yet on the Hexadragon. With one quick flick he sliced a good portion of the Hexadragon's side open to reveal the ribs before pinning's its tail to the floor. Then he danced around to the front and took both of the Hexadragon's front legs off at the knees. It bellowed in pain almost deafening Alexander and Squall. Squall slashed across it's throat, silencing it instantly by severing it's vocal cords. The lack of it's front legs sent it collapsing forwards but Squall wasn't finished yet. He stabbed the Hexadragon in the middle of the forehead, driving the Lion Heart in up to the hilt and then pulled the trigger. It's head exploded.

"Well that was bracing." Squall observed turning towards Alexander who was reluctantly but clearly impressed.

"Have I ever told you how glad I am that you're on my side?" The vampire enquired, looking as if the words caused him extreme physical pain.

"God, those words are going to stay with me for a while." Squall quipped as Alexander clambered over the pulverized remains of the Hexadragon. "Lead on."

The next part of the journey consisted of a precarious journey down a crumbling spiral staircase hewn from stone as they headed deeper and deeper into the bowels of the Deep Sea Deposit. Even with his intensive SeeD training Squall was beginning to tire and the frequent attacks by monsters well within the upper echelons of the food chain. Alexander in contrast just kept heading forwards, a fanatical glint in his eyes his katana unsheathed and swinging at his side.

Finally they reached the very bottom. Here was a dark pool in the centre of the room in which lengths of chain were dangling from the roof and a small metal jetty jutted out. At the other end of the jetty was a large console. Immediately Alexander headed straight for the console and grabbing a level hauled on it. There was a moment of dead silence and then it began.

It started as a dim rumbling, and the chains started clinking before they started moving being pulled up the rumbling intensified, quickly turning to a roar as the chains dragged an immense shape up and out of the pool. The chains finally stopped when their cargo was dangling ten metres over the water. Squall gaped up at the shape. He'd seen a lot of things in his time but never anything like this.

The monster, for Squall was sure that was what is was, was enormous and a dull purple colour, maybe closer to burgundy. It resembled some sort of demonic centaur. The bottom half was a massive demon with vaguely dog like muscles, no neck to speak of and a pug like face. Erupting out of the demons back just behind the face was the torso, head and arms of another powerful demon. It had two short, wing like appendages growing from its shoulder blades and carried a sword in one hand, seemingly fashioned from a single shard of stained glass.

Alexander seized another lever and pulled on it also. Electricity shot through the chains and coursed through their cargo. Another jolt followed, and another. On the fourth jolt both sets of eyes jerked wide open shining with demonic fury. The monster roared deafeningly before it tore itself free of the chains and jumped down onto the floor facing Squall and Alexander.

"Squall Leonhart," Alexander cried his eyes bright as he danced around with wicked glee. "Meet Ultima Weapon."

* * *

**Author Commentary: I told you things would get bad and when I say bad I don't think the word really does the situation justice. I think catastrophic might do, or perhaps calamitous. The gloves are well and truly off and my advice to anyone in Alexander's way would be get the hell out of there and stay there. I did enjoy writing Alexander because he's one character who is woefully underwritten in my fic so I enjoyed characterising him and giving him more layers. He's charming, sophisticated and polite but at the same time he is a murdering psychopath and if Squall doesn't toe the line bad things will happen. I also particularly enjoyed that little scene between Quistis and Selphie where they dealt with the fallout of Dante's death, but my personal favourite scene was the one with Gaston in the past. I told you you'd see him again. Things are moving towards a rather cataclysmic showdown with Squall, Alexander and his brand new toy. In the next chapter you should see some more of Seifer, Swift, Rinoa and Mika. As ever thank to my readers and reviewers, particularly Bebedora and Dee (I feel your pain. My internet is pretty unreliable). I love you guys so, so much.**

**~Ally Todd**


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty Eight: Preparation**

It didn't take Edea long to find Swift in the Training Centre, seeing as all she had to do was follow the annihilated remains of Grats, T-Rexaurs and the odd Granaldo. The remains also served to remind Edea that she was about to have a conversation with one of the worlds most dangerous people, who for all she knew could be intriguingly unstable. She rounded a corner and only barely managed to duck the T-Rexaur head that flew at her. She straightened up as Swift sheathed his katana and turned his back on his latest kill. He smiled slightly as he spotted Edea.

"Hello Edea," He said civilly, inkling his head at he respectfully. "It's good to see you again."

"Swift," Edea replied, keeping a wary eye on the vampire as he walked slowly towards her. "I'd say the same to you but we both know that I'd be lying. Truth be told, I've never much cared for vampires, much less their problems but needs must you know?"

"I do." Swift nodded as he sat down on a rock and pulled out a hip flash which he opened before taking a long pull. "I should really get one of those new-fangled thermos flask thingies. I prefer my blood at a good solid 98.6."

"Maybe we can skip the small talk and cut to the chase." Edea bit off with a scowl that would cut anyone else to the quick. "When this thing goes down with your charming psychopath of a brother I'm guessing it'll be you he'll come up against."

"Correct." Swift nodded as he stowed his hip flask. "That's why I'm in here training though I find myself woefully under challenged. They call this a Training Centre? That's laughable. I may need to get myself a real challenge some time soon." He cocked an eyebrow at Edea. "Care to have a pop?"

"No thank you." Edea said. "I assume you have a contingency plan should Alexander best you?"

"I'm working on it." Swift said pleasantly. "The main problem I'm encountering is the fact that most of my contingency plans revolve around me being alive to implement it. Alexander does enjoy pain but he's not stupid enough to leave me alive any longer than necessary. So right now, I'm thinking up another plan. Something ingenious and devious. Something no one has ever tried before. Something Alexander will never see coming."

"Well if I may lend a machete to your intellectual thicket," Edea grinned wondering how Swift would take her next surprise. "I may have the answer."

"You know I really doubt it." Swift deadpanned before shrugging. "Okay I'll bite. What's this answer you speak of?"

"Just a second." Edea pulled out a mobile phone and tapped a few buttons before throwing it to Swift. "Look on the screen." Swift complied and the change was instantaneous. His jaw dropped and his eyes bulged alarming. _Interesting. _Edea thought to herself. _I've never seen that before_.

"Are those what I think they are?" Swift whispered sounding more than a little punch drunk.

"They're the only five Obsidian Urns left in existence." Edea answered evidently enjoying the effect she'd created. "Priceless, ancient and one of the only methods to neutralize an ancient vampire of Alexander's calibre."

"How did you get your hands on those things?" Swift asked. " For obvious reasons I've been looking for all of them for literally thousands of years."

"Trade secret." Edea said evasively. "I'm asking the questions now, albeit at the behest of Quistis. According to her, the last time you left you said you were going to find out where Alexander's base of operations was located."

"That's right I did." Swift nodded recovering from the biggest shock of modern times with remarkable speed. "The bad news is that I was unable to get a pinpoint location. The good news is I've narrowed it down to three locations. One; the Bika Snowfield in Trabia. Two; the Centra Ruins."

"And the third?" Edea pressed him.

"It's so ludicrous I don't like to mention it." Swift informed her politely.

"Well do us a favour Swift," Quistis said as she and Seifer appeared round a palm tree. "And mention it."

"Battleship Island." Swift said. "I'm prepared to bet you though you'd never go back there eh Quistis?"

"Sorry but I don't believe that I'm familiar with Battleship Island." Quistis replied uncomprehendingly. "Maybe you could clarify?"

"Are you kidding me?" Swift exclaimed. "It's where you acquired the services of the Guardian Force Bahamut. Is this not ringing a bell?"

"Sorry." Quistis tried to force an apologetic expression but couldn't quite manage it. "If it helps we never actually figured out where we got Bahamut."

"Deep Sea Research Centre?" Swift said before sighing and laughing bitterly. "You have no idea what I'm talking about and what's more I think I know why. Your mind has been wiped of all recollections regarding Battleship Island. Only dark magic can do that and I think I know who the culprit is."

"Alexander?" Seifer ventured.

"Got it in one." Swift grinned. "I think we can safely say we know where our least favourite ancient vampire is working from. He's not as subtle as I remember. He should've just set a giant neon sign over Battleship Island saying; Alexander Obsidian's base. Trespassers will be eaten. I think it's high time we mobilised, what say you?"

"Is this it then?" Edea said a note of trepidation in her voice. "When are we going in?"

"As soon as possible." Seifer said enthusiastically, looking to Quistis. "Right? You've got a plan right?"

"Oh I've got a plan alright." Quistis smiled grimly before locking her eyes on Swift. "Any information you can give me about Alexander would be greatly appreciated."

"I wouldn't hold your breath." Swift said. "We have been estranged for quite a while. All I know about him is that he has no favourite strategies and no discernible weaknesses. He finds his opponents psychological blind spots and tailors his moves to exploit him. Other than that, I think you should let me deal with him. I'm the only person alive who can do that and I'm beginning to formulate a plan."

"It's not that I don't trust you, even though I don't," Quistis said. "But are you absolutely sure this plan will work? We can't have this go wrong on us."

"Oh this will work." Swift nodded and there was a strange light in his eyes. "He'll never see this coming."

* * *

Steam was still rising from the carcasses of the four vampire hunters Alexander had offered Ultima Weapon as a peace offering when Squall decided he was fed up to the back teeth with being in the dark. He stormed over to the vampire and spun him around to face him.

"Okay that's enough." He growled, loosening the quick release on his gun blade sheath. "Are you going to tell me why you awakened an ancient doomsday weapon or not? I find it hard to believe you just want to watch the world burn."

"You really are beginning to irritate me." Alexander said loftily before his voice and face hardened. "Don't take this the wrong way but just who the fuck do you think you're talking to?"

"You if the cap fits." Squall retorted, unwilling to be intimidated. "You've been holding out on me ever since we set up shop together and I'm sick of it. If you don't give me solid information on what exactly you're doing with Ultima Weapon then we're going to have a pretty serious problem."

"I suggest you think again about threatening me." Alexander said between gritted teeth.

"Okay." Squall said before unsheathing his gun blade. "I've thought about it again and I've decided that if you don't fess up you'll get this up your arse." He indicated the point of his gun blade.

In a single blur of motion Alexander slapped his gun blade aside, as one might do to a flat stick before kicking it from Squall's hands and shoving him away. Squall's back up knife slid out of his sleeve but Alexander pulled out his own knife and threw it. The hilt struck Squall directly between the eyes and while he was stunned Alexander grabbed him by his lapels, tugged him forward and nutted him in the face. Then he slammed Squall against the nearest wall with an arm across his throat.

"That was very colourful Squall." He laughed. "Based on that alone I will tell you what you want to know." He released Squall and sat down on the floor in the lotus positions. He pulled out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He lit one, inhaled the smoke contentedly and offered the packet to Squall.

"I don't smoke." Squall said quietly as he retrieved his gun blade and sheathed it with more venom than was strictly necessary.

"Good for you." Alexander said brightly. "It's a filthy habit, and when you're not a vampire it's a lethal one."

"Are you going to tell me what I want to know or are you just going to lecture me about the evils of tobacco?" Squall growled between clenched teeth, fighting to keep his rising temper under control.

"Do you ever have any fun?" Alexander replied before holding up a hand. "Hang on I'll tell you. Let me open with a question? Tell me Squall, have you ever felt lonely? Abandoned? Like every person you ever loved has beat it for pastures new and left you behind."

"I'm trying so hard to forget." Squall muttered under his breath, though Alexander's words had struck a definite chord somewhere deep inside him.

"Of course you have." Alexander continued. "Your beloved Sis, now going by the name of Ellone Loire disappeared on you. Believe me, I can sympathise. You see, you're not the only person to be abandoned. You see, back in the day my father killed my mother. My brother Adrian and I tracked him down and killed him in revenge. After that I started living my life to the fullest, figuratively speaking. For some reason that didn't go down particularly well with the rest of my siblings. I was very close to my little sister Alice but she did nothing to stop Swift, Adrian and my other brother Gaston knocking seven colours of shit out of me and then they all abandoned me."

"I'm guessing you didn't like that." Squall muttered.

"Would you have liked that, if the only family you had left abandoned you?" Alexander enquired. "Long story short, I hunted my siblings own and killed them, more or less. Obviously I didn't manage to get Swift but three out four isn't too bad is it? I was abandoned by my family so I decided what I should do is get another one. Maybe look among people or beings who share mutual interests with little old me. You know; dark magic, mayhem, carnage and slaughter. Tell me Squall what do you know about the Old Ones?"

"Not much." Squall said.

"All monsters that walk the Earth are tainted." Alexander explained. "Some are human hybrids, like vampires. The Old Ones are pure monsters and they were forced out of this plane of existence by humans. Some were killed by humans; some brought themselves to the point of warring among themselves. On, that I know of was locked inside a monster and buried under the oceans." His gaze moved to Ultima Weapon. "That monster. Somewhere inside Ultima Weapon there is an Old One named Eden, the Eternal Breath. All Old One's are connected and if I can free the Eternal Breath then they'll all come back and I personally think that the Old Ones and I are kindred spirits if you will."

"Kindred spirits?" Squall echoed faintly.

You see, fragments of various Old Ones are scattered across the world. The Old One governing the oceans, his remnants became known as Leviathan. The Old One governing the land, his remnants became known as the Brothers. The Guardian Forces you use are all part of an Old One, with the exception of one. Bahamut, the King of Dragons. It was he that finally booted the old Ones from this world but they had already been incredibly weakened when he did that so I don't think Bahamut will be anything even resembling a threat when he faces every Old One ever. You wanted to know what I planned to do with Ultima Weapon Squall. Well this is it. I'm going to bring the Old One's back. All I need to do it is the Eternal Breath and the blood of Hyne, or failing that, a Sorceress."

"Let me get the Sorceress for you." Squall said suddenly. "I know I can get her. All I have to do is play the nice guy act, as if I've got a soul and she'll be putty in my hands."

"There's no need for that sort of duplicity." Alexander smiled. "She will come to me. Oh and Squall, if you want revenge on your ex-friends then I suggest you do it before I start the ritual because once the Old One's come back they will want to reclaim this world and I think that could result in total eradication of mankind and vampires. Except for us of course. If we play this right, we could end up with the powers of the Old Ones ourselves. More importantly, I'll have a real family."

* * *

"The target area is a former Deep Sea Research Centre known as Battleship Island." Quistis said, her voice ringing out in the lecture theatre as a real time satellite image of Battleship Island appeared on the projector screen. "We are not sure what sort of man power we're facing but our intelligence…" Quistis indicated Swift "…has told us we may be facing nearly one hundred highly trained humans that should not be underestimated. The humans are likely to be concentrated on and around a whaler moored on the west side of the island. It is also very likely that Squall Leonhart and Alexander Obsidian are in the area. Both are extremely dangerous and should not be approached."

"So what's the plan Quistis?" Zell asked with typical bluntness.

"There will be three teams, code named Bronze, Silver and Gold." Quistis went on. "Bronze Team will be led by Instructor Dincht. They will approach the trawler and dispense with any guards before sinking the trawler and then moving to back up the other two teams. We believe that Battleship Island is utterly infested with monsters so Silver Team led by myself will protect Gold Team, comprised of Seifer Almasy and Swift Obsidian at all costs. Gold Team's directive is very simple. To locate and confront Squall and Alexander and to neutralize them, dead or alive. Should the mission go south, the Dollet and Galbadian navies and air forces are standing by. They will sink Battleship Island into the ocean and finish the job with depth charges so you can rest assured that even if we're all killed we'll have pretty spectacular funeral pyre."

"That's very comforting." A voice called out from the assembled SeeD members. Irvine Kinneas looked conspicuously innocent.

"I would like to offer an amendment to the plan." Swift spoke up. "Edea and I are working on a plan that if it works will neutralise Alexander with a one hundred per cent success rate. However in order for it to work Seifer will have to go in alone and potentially end up fighting Squall and Alexander at the same time. Are up for that Seifer?"

"Absolutely out of the question." Quistis argued.

"Find these guys and point me at them." Seifer said at the exact same time. "I can handle this."

"You're not going in alone Seifer." Quistis said. "That's absolutely final. Pick someone you want to go with you."

"Me." A voice said from the entrance to the lecture theatre. Everyone's jaws dropped as Rinoa stepped into the light with Mika close behind. "It's got to be me."

"I'm not so sure that's good idea Rinoa…" Quistis began but Mika cut her off with a wave of his hand.

"Don't even bother." He advised firmly. "She's completely and utterly hell bent on this. I tried to talk her out of this and she threatened to make my crown jewels explode."

"It's got to be me." Rinoa repeated. "If anyone can tap into the spark of humanity still left in Squall it's me. Furthermore, we know Swift tried to abduct me so he could use me to draw Alexander out. Alexander needs a Sorceress and one turning up directly under his nose? That'll knock anyone for six."

"Swift; please back me up on this." Quistis said exasperatedly turning to the vampire who had a pensive look on his face.

"I don't think it's such a bad idea actually." He said slowly, pointedly avoiding Quistis' eye.

"What?" Quistis shrieked.

"I can do this Quistis, that's all I ask." Rinoa said. "I'm not overjoyed at the prospect of working with Seifer but I passed the SeeD field exam the same as everyone else. I've got Sorceress power behind me. Just trust me on this and we might stand a chance of coming out of this with Squall alive. Otherwise, he'll kill Seifer or Seifer will kill him. Do you want either of those things to happen?"

"I'm good with the former." Zell called out, to some hastily stifled laughter from the SeeD's.

"Could be a bit of a problem that." Swift said in an undertone to Mika, noticing the daggers Seifer and Zell were shooting at each other.

"What do you think?" Mika replied quietly. "Time to adopt one of Dante's old methods. Ten seconds?"

"Ten seconds." Swift concurred before raising his voice. "Could Seifer and Zell come with me and Mika please?"

"What for?" Quistis asked breaking off her heated debate with Rinoa and turned to look at Swift.

"Patented Dante Skyle method for alleviating tension." It was Mika who answered her. "If we go into this with Zell and Seifer hating each other we'll be extremely lucky to come out. Swift and I are going to talk to them and force their differences aside. So to speak."

After Swift and Mika frogmarched Zell and Seifer outside they forced them to remove all equipment and weaponry, as well as body armour and stand five metres apart facing each other.

"Okay, let's get this out of your system." Swift said calmly. "You two go ahead and fight."

Two people as impulsive and short tempered as Zell and Seifer needed no more encouragement. They tore into each other, kicking and punching and fell to the ground. Within a second of hitting the ground years of combat training, not to mention four years of covert operations in Zell's case and four years of violent prison brawls in Seifer's dissolved to the level of two drunks grappling outside a bar. After ten seconds Swift and Mika waded in and ripped them apart. Mika pinned Zell to a wall while Swift bundled Seifer to the ground.

"We have to be together on this." Swift said quietly but firmly. "We're not asking you to be friends. All we're asking is for a lack of open hostility between you for the duration of this mission. You will shake hands. We are all on the same side and the only way we'll come through this is if we all watch each other backs."

Seifer and Zell moved towards each other and eyeing each other with deep loathing shook hands. They both let go extremely quickly.

"Okay the plan has been changed." Quistis aid as Mika, Swift, Seifer and Zell re-entered. "Gold Team now consists of Rinoa Heartilly and Seifer Almasy. Mika Skyle will be part of Silver Team as Rinoa's personal bodyguard but he will not accompany her when she makes contact with the two primary targets. This mission is extremely high risk so you have forty eight hours to get your affairs in order. If the executors of your will are in this room, you must appoint an alternative. That will be all."

"Quistis," Swift called her over as everyone trooped out of the lecture theatre. "We didn't always get along but I think I knew Dante better than most. You've put together a good solid plan. Wherever he is, I think he's proud of you."

"Thanks." Quistis smiled sincerely up at Swift. "Where do you think he is now?"

"People think that when you become a vampire you get a one way ticket to the fryer." Swift said. "That's not true. Dante did some pretty evil things in his time but all the good he's done far outweighs them. I'd guess Purgatory, at worst. At best, I wouldn't say Paradise is totally out of reach."

"What about you Swift Obsidian?" Quistis enquired. "Where do you think you'll go when your number is up?"

"Ninth circle of hell without any shadow of a doubt." Swift said immediately.

"You sound very certain." Quistis noted.

"Have you ever read _The Divine Comedy _by Dante Alighieri, specifically the first part, Inferno?" Swift asked.

"It was required reading for my academic studies." Quistis replied. "I'm a bit rusty if I'm honest."

"Well you should know the entire poem is a detailed tour of the afterlife." Swift continued. "Inferno describes the nine circles of hell. At the very bottom, the ninth circle of hell the devil is frozen in ice. He's got three heads, three mouths and those mouths are reserved for the greatest sinners. I forget who was in the centre mouth. The one person in all of human history deemed the greatest sinner. What was his name again?"

"Judas Iscariot." Quistis whispered.

"Right," Swift nodded. "The worst place in hell is reserved for those who betray. I'm ready to betray my won brother so it looks like I'll be shaking hands with Cain, Brutus and Judas himself when the Grim Reaper calls."

"That's gloomy." Quistis observed.

"That's life." Swift grinned. "Believe me Quistis; Dante would be extremely proud of you today. If you don't believe me, ask Mika."

* * *

It was midnight when Rinoa walked into the Secret Area in the Training Centre. Three people were waiting for her. Edea was holding a medium sized suitcase, while Swift was idly twirling his katana. Seifer was staning away from the others, his face in shadow. Rinoa sighed and stepped forwards.

"Okay I'm here." She sighed. "There had better be a good reason for you three dragging me out of bed."

"Don't worry we'll be quick and you can get right back to making whoopee with Mika." Seifer snickered.

"Seifer, please." Edea said shooting her former Knight a warning look. "Rinoa I'm glad you could come. We're working on a contigency plan regarding Alexander in case things get out of control and Swift can't handle him."

"Okay," Rinoa said uncertainly, and slightly disquieted by Edea even admitting the possibility. "And the plan is…"

"These." Edea unlocked the suitcase and pulled out five small, identical urns, like the ones that contained ashes. They seemed to be fashioned from a greenish-black, glass like substance. Obsidian, Rinoa realised.

"What are these?" Seifer asked.

"Do you want to take this one Swift?" Edea asked the vampire who hesitated before picking up one of the urns and holding it up.

"This is what is known as an Obsidian Urn." He explained. "They were designed for use against ancient vampires, five particular ancient vampires of the Obsidian family. Their names? Alice, Gaston, Adrian, Swift and…" He turned the urn so Rinoa, Seifer and Edea could see the name on the side.

"Alexander." Rinoa said, stretching out a finger and tracing the carved name. "So how do these urn things work?"

"If I can't kill Alexander we need to neutralize him." Swift continued. "These things don't kill us, they contain us. As far as I know no one has ever sucessfully used one of these. You can't use them on Alice, Adrian or Gaston because they are dead. Alexander and I are a different matter. Of course, only the urn with his name on it will work." Swift pulled the lid off to reveal that there was a very sharp spike on the underside. "Drive this into Alexander's heart and he's instantly contained in this urn."

"So who's going to do it?" Rinoa asked. "I'd rather not get to close to Alexander if it's all the same to you."

"I'll do it." Seifer said it quietly. "Rinoa and I are the only ones going in, so if she's not doing it, then it falls to me." He stretched out and took the weapon, tucking it inside his jacket.

"I will come in." Swift said. "I'll just do it a little later. You can trust me, though I'll understand if you don't. Now I suggest we get some sleep. We've got quite a trying few days ahead of us."

* * *

**Author Commentary: I am so sorry this took long and I'm equally sorry I had to put this fic on hiatus but I'm back now. There were a couple of technical issues, primarily the fact that the memory stick that Doomsday was on went kaput. I digress, back to the commentary. First off, I'd like to alert my readers to a new writer on this site named Tajon who's started writing his/her new fic Final Fantay-New Saga (8). It sounds like it's going to be pretty good and when I have the time I'll review it myself. This chapter, technical problems notwithstanding was a nightmare to write anyway as it was almost entirely exposition but I needed to fill in a few blanks, and finally bring Alexander's plans to light. I hoped I managed to flesh out and characterise him more. He may be a sociopath with a great love for sadism, carnage and murder but underneath it all, he's just a guy who lost his family. Well okay he killed most of them but that's irrelevant. It's been my experience that every villain that's worth a damn has humanity in them. I didn't like Kefka because he had no solid motivation other than being gibbering insane and wanting to watch the world burn. A lot of people might say Hamlet is the greatest tragedy ever written but I think the "Tragedy of Anakin Skywalker" holds pretty high claim. In the next chapter you'll see a boat load of action, including a couple of pretty serious one on one duels. You'll also see one of the biggest plot twists I've written and more. Thank you to all my reviewers and readers includiing Bebedora and Dee. To all of you; standby for Apoclaypse.**

**~Ally Todd**


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter Twenty Nine: Apocalypse Now**

The Ragnarok wasn't exactly a low profile method of insertion so Quistis had called in a couple of favours that the Dollet Dukedom owed Balamb Garden, and she'd gotten a hold of wetsuits, air tanks, scuba mask and Zodiac power boats. The general plan was to cut the engines a mile from the island and swim the rest of the way. Mika and Swift as vampires didn't need the air tanks and Seifer was dressed in light-weight, tight-fitting black body armour as opposed to the CRW (counter-revolutionary warfare) dress the other SeeD members were wearing under the wet suits. Edea was staying behind on the Dollet flagship and Selphie was flying the Ragnarok in the upper-atmosphere, as there were no sensors in creation that could pick it up.

Zell cut the engines on his boat as they came within a mile of the whaler. He turned to his second-in-command; his protégé and newly qualified SeeD Zach Wallace.

"How do you fancy a mile swim to the target?" He asked Zach quietly who grimaced.

"Not much, especially at this time of year." Zach replied. "How will we know when we get there?"

"Your head hits the ship." Zell replied with a look that indicated his belief that Zach was a little slow on the uptake today. "Its metal you see. At least with your throwing stars you don't need the weight belts." Zell turned to the rest of his team in the boat. "Zach and I will head to the target vessel and clear it. Then we'll signal you to come in and set the charges before we hit the island and finish off Alexander's flunkies. Are you with me?" As one his team nodded.

Zell and Zach sat on the side of the vessel. Zell went first and pitched over backwards into the water, followed by Zach. They both set off with powerful front crawls, trying to ignore the sub-zero temperature of the water. Not for the first time Zell found himself mentally cursing the salt in the water that kept it from freezing. After a while they reached the whaler. Communicating silently, Zell pulled out a rolled up wire ladder with hooks out his belt kit and tossed it upwards where it snagged on a railing on the lower deck. They both pulled out silenced pistols and checked them before Zach started climbing up the ladder. He stepped onto the deck and looked around before stripping off his wetsuit and signalling Zell to follow.

Zell and Zach both crouched behind a large set of crates as two guards toting compact machine guns appeared round a corner. As they passed the two crouched SeeD's Zell gave Zach the thumbs up. They both jumped up and clamped their hands over the guard's mouths and locked their arms around their throats before twisting violently. With a sickening double crunch the men's larynxes were crushed and their necks were snapped. Zell and Zach dragged the bodies out of sight. They could've tossed them over board but the splashes could've alerted their friends.

"This way," Zach whispered, nodding at a door. He crouched and peered through the key hole to see a man approaching. He waited until the door opened slightly at which point he grabbed it and smashed it against the man on the other side. His victim collapsed unconscious and Zell grabbed him, before dragging him into another hiding place and finishing him off with a double headshot from his gun. Zach opened the door and looked around inside the room. It was carpeted with a thick white carpet; the kind of carpet blood would stain. Zach holstered his pistol and pulled a miniature collapsible crossbow, loaded with a toxic dart. A man opened the door at the other end and Zach fired, the dart hitting him square in the neck. Then he tossed a grenade into the room beyond. With a silent explosion a great cloud of tear gas exploded. Zach and Zell donned gas masks and the barged the door open, swinging extendable batons.

SeeD issue batons were of the same designs at the ones used by most police forces. They were designed to break bones, usually legs and arms but Zach and Zell had no qualms about using them to break skulls and necks. There were too many bodies to hide so they moved on quickly to the upper deck. One man was standing at a railing and smoking looking out over the ocean. Zell seized him and bundled him onto the deck. Zack stomped his throat in, and not taking any chances slashed him across the throat with a battle knife. Zell drew his own knife before whirling as another man came up the stairs. With a hiss of parted air, Zell's threw his knife. It hit the man in the chest and he collapsed but not before his finger tightened on the trigger of his gun.

"That's torn it." Zach grunted.

Two men came up the stairs at the other end of the deck guns at the ready. Zach launched four throwing stars, hitting them in the legs and distracting them long enough for Zell to cover the distance between them. He locked his arms around their necks and twisted violently snapping their necks like twigs. Zell then happened to look towards Battleship Island.

"Oh brilliant." The gun fire had evidently alerted every single one of Alexander's men who were moving towards the whaler.

"Should we call in back up?" Zach said as he stopped one with a well placed throwing star and then blew two others to kingdom come with a hand grenade.

"We could do that." Zell said as he closed his eyes and focused his mind. Not an easy feat, because this _was _Zell Dincht. That said he was a SeeD operative, and SeeD had a very particular set of skills at their disposal. "I just got a better idea."

Alexander's henchmen were just starting to fire at Zach and Zell when something happened that stopped them in their tracks. An enormous column of fire exploded upwards in front of them. Within the column a fireball transformed into the gigantic horned shape of Ifrit the Demon Lord of the Flames. He roared like thunder and then started launching balls of molten rock at the men who switched their aims to Ifrit. The bullets burst in showers of sparks before they hit him.

"Impressive," Zach said before deciding to bring his Guardian Force out to play. "Now watch this."

Several large boulders rose up behind Alexander's men and then transformed into the Brother's Sacred and Minotaur. They proceeded to cheerfully smash their maces repeatedly into the ground, setting off localized powerful earthquakes, destroying the men Ifrit hadn't already roasted alive. Then they decided to opt for a less subtle method of destruction; running headlong into the men swinging their maces maniacally.

"Hell hath no fury like a SeeD shot at." Zell yelled jubilantly before pulling out a pistol and firing a flare into the air. This would call in the rest of Bronze Team and let Silver and Gold Team's know that the path to the bowels of Battleship Island was clear of men at least. Then he and Zach proceeded to the other side of the ship to finish off any more guards while the SeeD demolition teams led by the armourer Talon started placing their charges to sink the ship.

"I don't think Alexander's going to like this." Talon laughed as Bronze Team left the ship.

* * *

At that precise point Silver and Gold Teams landed on the other side of the island. Quistis leapt ashore first and after a quick scout around she started issuing orders.

"Irvine, get to an elevated position and provide some over watch." She said before looking to the sharpshooter. "Do you need anything?"

"Some heavy ordnance wouldn't go amiss." Irvine said brightly. "Not to mention some company qualified to operate it."

"Fine." Quistis pointed out two SeeD's specialising in heavy firepower. "You two take half the Javelin missiles and give Irvine some company. Anything that moves, shoot it until it stops. The rest of you spread out and keep in constant contact."

"It's quiet." Rinoa commented before looking to Swift. "Is Alexander usually this passive aggressive?"

"I like to think he might not know that we're here." Swift replied quietly. "If that is the case it won't take him long to figure it out and when he does…that's pretty much when the bad starts."

It was at that point two guards appeared around the corner and raised their weapons, apparently under the delusion that they could handle a large team of Balamb Gardens finest that included two vampires, a Sorceress and a Sorceress' ex-Knight. Seifer cut one of the men down without even breaking stride while Swift punched into the other man's chest in and tore his heart out.

"Well that was just sad." Seifer commented. "If those are the sort of guys Alexander employs I think we should just go home because I don't think he's much of a threat."

"Why would Alexander have two rejects from the Catering Corp protecting his back?" Swift asked. "He's many things but he is not stupid. So why would be protect himself so deplorably? Answer? He didn't."

"Meaning?" Quistis asked before the truth hit her with the force of a speeding train. "It's a trap."

It was at that point dozens of men got to their feet and aimed weapons at the SeeD's. Quistis couldn't remember even having this amount of firearms pointed at her. Their numbers were only surpassed by their variety. Sniper rifles, shotguns, light machine guns, assault, rifles, sub machine guns and handguns of varying models and designs. Seifer got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, no doubt owing to the laser sights playing across his chest.

"If you all stay still nothing bad will happen to you." A familiar voice said before its owner laughed. "Oh who am I kidding? You're all going to die anyway. Sorry to be so blunt but you need to get used to the idea."

Swift and Mika both wheeled around to see Major Marcus Foxton standing atop at rock, grinning down at them. His revolver was clenched in his fist and it was aimed directly at Swift's head.

"Oh brilliant." Swift rolled his eyes before addressing Foxton. "Why are you working for a lunatic of my brother's magnitude Major?"

"He pays me." Foxton explained a shot into Swift's stomach from close range. "A great deal more handsomely than you ever did if you ask me but why dwell?"

"I thought he was supposed to be dead?" Quistis said to Rinoa. "Scratch that, I saw his body yet he's walking, talking and shooting. That's interesting."

"Who is this guy anyway?" Seifer asked.

"Ex Esthar Special Forces gun for hire." Quistis explained. "Swift hired him to kidnap Rinoa, Mika and Ellone and strap them to bombs back when he was doing his level best to piss us off. His employment ended when Dante snapped his neck."

"Go on then." Foxton said to Mika who was looking around, gauging angles and distances. "Rush me. It'll be funny."

Before Foxton could do anything there was a loud whistling followed by an enormous, ear splitting explosion as a Javelin missile fell out of the sky and detonated among the men between the SeeD's and the entrance of Battleship Island. Usually, Javelin's were used on armoured vehicles but a certain Irvine Kinneas had always maintained that Javelins were a lot more useful against infantry than people have them credit for.

"Go!" Swift yelled surging to his feet. He seized Rinoa by the waist and scruff of her neck and threw her into the entrance, followed by Seifer before charging in after them himself.

Foxton and his men were stunned after the first Javelin strike, so the next three were not a good day out to say the very least. While the SeeD opened up on their attackers Mika set his sights on the big cheese. He leapt through the air and hit Foxton in the chest and head, knocking him to the ground. Foxton raised his gun but Mika seized the barrel and wrenched it from his grip, dislocating his trigger finger and almost tearing it clean off. Foxton howled in agony as Mika grabbed him by his lapels. After a moments consideration he head butted Foxton in the face, stunning him.

"I don't know how you're alive and frankly I don't care," Mika growled threateningly. "But this time, I suggest you stay dead." With that Mika pinned Foxton to the ground with one arm and savagely ripped his heart from his chest with the other. Usually Mika would leave the heart removal to Swift, Alexander, Dante and people like them, but Foxton had kidnapped him and strapped him to a bomb.

Newly qualified SeeD Mark Astonol was the star of the show however. He went at Alexander's men like a locomotive, swinging his hammer in wide circles, permanently neutralizing anyone it came into contact with. It wasn't the most attractive battle dance ever seen but it was definitely one of the most destructive. Mika quickly joined him and they teamed up to become a single and night unstoppable whirlwind.

One man had blindsided Quistis and knocked her down with the butt of his rifle. He stood over her, apparently hoping that the death of a leader might change the tide of the battle. He had however reckoned without the powers SeeD could bring into a battle. More accurately he had reckoned without Quistis' potent Blue Magic. She rolled over and targeted the man with her powerful Laser Eye technique, burning two tennis ball sized holes through his chest.

In the mayhem no one noticed a shadowy figure skirting the fray before locating a grate and ripping it open before climbing into Battleship Island's air ducts.

* * *

"Okay then," Swift said as he set out all five Obsidian Urns before unstopping the one bearing Alexander's name and handing the stopper to Seifer. "If you get a chance to stab him, take it."

"Got it," Seifer nodded, stowing the stopped inside his jacket. "How long do you reckon it'll be before you're in a position to back us up?"

"Ten minutes, give or take." Swift answered. "If you're worried about your ability to hold your own in combat against him then my advice is keep him talking and maintain a holding pattern."

"Come on Seifer." Rinoa grunted as she headed over to the hole. "The sooner we can get this over with the better. I don't want to be on this island when the Dollet and Galbadian navies decide to sink it."

"Hey," Swift called as Rinoa and Seifer readied themselves to jump into the hole. "Good luck."

"And you." Rinoa replied before jumping into the darkness and lighting a Maglite as she hit the floor. Seifer followed and lit his own torch.

Squall and Alexander hadn't bothered to close any of the doors and bulkheads they'd opened on the way down so Rinoa and Seifer didn't have to watch how much they breathed. This state of affairs did have a slight drawback. All the doors being open meant that the nastier monsters from further down in the Deep Sea Research Centre could find their way upwards. This became incredibly apparent to Seifer and Rinoa very quickly. Seifer knocked Rinoa aside but in doing so cost him the opportunity to defend himself. A Behemoth thundered into him, it's snout hitting him in the chest and driving him backwards into a wall, it's tusks sinking into the reinforced steel either side of him. One of the major downsides of being caught between a Behemoth's tusks meant that the beast could bring it's enormously powerful jaws into play.

Seifer was down, stunned and would probably be feeling some serious pain was it not for Rinoa's extraordinary capability to put her differences with her ex-boyfriend to one side. Seifer had dropped the Hyperion when the Behemoth had hit him and Rinoa scooped it up before using it to pin the spiked tip of the Behemoth's tail to the floor. It roared deafeningly, the volume easily sufficient enough to bring Seifer back to full consciousness. He leapt to his feet as Rinoa hurled the Hyperion to him. He caught the weapon and after a moment's hesitation forced the Hyperion between the Behemoths' jaws, keeping its mouth open. Then pulling out a Glock 18 automatic pistol, he proceeded to riddle the Behemoth's front end with lead while Rinoa unleashed a Flare spell on it from behind. Seifer reloaded, seized the Hyperion and ducked under the tusks to join Rinoa. Together they faced the Behemoth that tore its tusks from the wall and spun to face them. The Behemoth ballooned its cheeks and howled at them. Seifer simply leaned on the Hyperion and watched the best with an air of polite detachment. He knew this sort of tactic. The Behemoth was trying to rattle them, scare them into submission.

"Yeah, yeah real scary." Rinoa said, a small smile warping her lips as she remembered Zach's attempt at engaging a highly dangerous Monster in a macho repertoire. "Back off and maybe I won't have to cut you into little pieces."

Seifer raised an eyebrow at Rinoa. She'd certainly changed since he'd known her. She's clearly grown a spine of solid steel and the look on her face made him fell a small pang of sympathy for the Behemoth. He wasn't able to approach the subject because the Behemoth thundered forwards, its enormous shoulder heaving and the tips of its horns aimed at them. Rinoa hurled herself aside almost straight away but Seifer waited until the beast was practically down his throat before sidestepping and swinging the Hyperion, pulling the trigger as is met its target. The Behemoth wheeled around, roaring in totally justified pain as Seifer had just sliced the front half of its right tusk off.

"How'd you like that Sparky?" Seifer yelled jubilantly.

Severing a Behemoth's tusk was not like cutting through dead tissue like a horses hoof. The tusks were full of nerve endings and arteries so the pain, as well as extreme blood loss was totally justified. Not to be outdone, Rinoa pulled herself into a sitting position and let fly with her Blaster Edge, loaded with the ultimate Shooting Star projectile. It hissed through the air and sliced a large chunk out of the Behemoth's left shoulder. Rinoa followed the attack up with an enormously powerful Holy spell, targeting the shoulder wound. It bellowed in pain before wheeling around to face her.

"Oi you! Get away from her!" Seifer pulled his Glock back out and got the Behemoth's attention by firing a single round into the air. The Behemoth turned back to Seifer and snorted before bearing its teeth at him. Seifer flipped his safety catch to fully automatic.

As Seifer opened fire Rinoa started pummelling the Behemoth with every spell she could think of. Behemoths were among the toughest and deadliest monsters on the planet but there was only so much punishment one could take. It would've tried to utilise its last ditch Meteor spell but Seifer and Rinoa wouldn't allow it the time. Seifer dashed forwards and as the Behemoth opened its mouth to take a bite out of him he drove the tip of the Hyperion into the roof of its mouth. He twisted the weapon, until something gave and the blade dove in up to its hilt. The Behemoth shuddered violently, bowling Seifer over. Rinoa finally felled the monster with a potent Thundaga spell. It twitched briefly and then went still.

"Shocking." Seifer observed as he retrieved his gun blade.

"Be warned," Rinoa said pointing at him. "I don't enjoy your company at the best of times and I'm equally dismissive of your tasteless attempts at humour."

"Oh so hostile Rinoa." Seifer observed woundingly. "I'm helping you know. Can't we just let bygones be bygones?" Rinoa's glare was all answer he needed. "Woman." Seifer muttered under his breath as he followed her.

The next monster they encountered was just as lethal and bad tempered as a Behemoth. After an expletive filled rant at his own luck Seifer formed a quick and effective strategy for taking out a T-Rexaur. He threw the Hyperion to Rinoa before interlocking his fingers for form a step for Rinoa. When she stepped into it Seifer pushed upwards, launching Rinoa into the air. As she reached to top of her jump she brought the Hyperion down on the T-Rexaur muscular neck, beheading it where it stood.

"Did you see that?" Seifer exulted jubilantly. "Just like a jack in the box!"

"SeeD Special Forces is turning into a circus." Rinoa muttered reluctantly as they moved on.

"I think this it." Seifer said as the bottom of a crumbling stone staircase. Rinoa dropped to her belly and crawled forwards so she could see into the room. Luckily both occupants of the room had their backs to her. Rinoa instantly recognised Squall. She could only assume that the other man was Alexander. They were both watching the action on the surface on several HD television screens. Rinoa turned back to Seifer and signalled that he should come around from behind while Rinoa distracted them. That plan however went up in smoke as a low growling reached their ears. It turned out that Alexander had employed the ultimate guard dogs. Three Ruby Dragons had somehow managed to blindside them and sneak up unnoticed.

"Go," Seifer said grimly as he set his jaw and raised the Hyperion. "I'll take care of these guys."

Rinoa didn't know exactly what Seifer had planned but something about his face told her it wouldn't be good time to argue. While Seifer hurled himself at the beasts like jet propelled attitude with a gun blade Rinoa walked towards Squall and Alexander. They would had to be deaf to not here the commotion the Ruby Dragons and Seifer were making. They turned around but when they saw Rinoa they froze. Alexander recovered first.

"Rinoa Heartilly," He said brightly, bowing slightly to her. "It's an honour. My name is Alexander Obsidian. Can I get you something?"

"I'm not staying long." Rinoa replied evenly. "How about you just restore Squall's soul and we'll be on our way."

"Couldn't even if I wanted to." Alexander informed her as he walked slowly towards her. "That's why I chose the spell in question. That's irrelevant however. Right now I need you to make a small donation to a greater cause."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rinoa growled ominously.

"I need your blood." Alexander said pleasantly before he grabbed her and forced n Odine bracelet onto her arm. Then he dragged her over to the huge pool and drew a small knife from his belt. "The blood of Hyne will awaken the Eternal Breath!" He intoned before slashing the blade across Rinoa's palm. He forced her hand out over the pool.

"That's it?" Rinoa asked.

"Well Squall and I were talking and we decided it might be a lot more fun to rape you to death." Alexander explained evenly. "Now be a good girl and watch this."

It was at that point Ultima Weapon exploded out of the pool and leapt onto dry land again. It spun to look at Rinoa before it quite simply disappeared. It simply winked out of existence altogether. Alexander smiled before drawing back a fist and punching Rinoa square in the face. She flew across the interior of the huge room and bounced off a wall, before hitting the floor unconscious.

"I never tire of doing that."

* * *

Mika and Quistis were back to back, fighting off Alexander's men when suddenly Ultima Weapon appeared right in the middle of them.

"What the hell is that?" Mika said.

* * *

Squall and Alexander had gone back to watching the mayhem unfold on the array of television screens. Squall was impassively watching the action, showing no joy nor sadness at what was happening. Alexander in contrast was loving every minute of it, rubbing his hands together with wicked glee. Neither of them noticed a bloodied, bruised Seifer approaching from behind them.

"Fun isn't it." The blonde gun blade specialist said. Squall and Alexander both turned to face him. Squall raised his gun blade but Alexander stopped him.

"Not yet Squall." He advised firmly before addressing Seifer cordially. "I do appreciate violence."

"Then you're going to love me." A voice said from across the room. Seifer, Squall and Alexander all turned to look and were all simultaneously rendered speechless for the first time ever. Standing not ten metres away, wearing jeans teamed with combat boots and an unbuttoned dark blue shirt, stood the last person they all expected to see. Standing not ten metes away carrying a wooden baseball bat, the end of which was burning merrily stood the thing nightmares are made of. Standing not ten metres away stood Dante Skyle.

* * *

**Author Commentary: Here's a handy hint regarding my work. If you don't see someone die, they might not have actually kicked it. I wanted to bring Dante back and believe me he's learnt a few new tricks in his time and he won't be as easy to take down as usual. The action will be kicked into high gear, nay **_**higher **_**gear in the next chapter with Squall versus Seifer and Dante versus Alexander. It's going to be epic and I'm thinking that the next chapter could be the last in the fic, save from my reflections and a pretentious making of thing. If you have nay questions about this fic leave a review or PM me and I'll answer them as best I can. I'm not quite sure what I can tell you about this fic. It blew my mind and I'm the author! I will warn you now, the next chapter is not for the faint of heart. It'll be low on the humour but high on the action and angst and there's at least one main character (one of the core six no less) who's fate will be left uncertain. Things are about to go so wildly out of control it's just not funny. As ever thanks go out to my readers, followers and reviewers, Bebedora and Dee. Thank you all so much for your continuing support. You guys keep me going and this fic is dedicated to each and every one of you. Thank you so, so much! **

**~Ally Todd**


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter Thirty: Eternal Breath**

Alexander found his voice first.

"It's not possible." He managed.

"It's not probable." Dante corrected ominously. "It's turns out even I had no idea how hard it is to kill me. I could say that I'm some sort of super vampire, but I think I'm just a regular vampire with a few skills. These skills, they should be enough to kill a lunatic of your magnitude." With that Dante lunged forward at full vampire speed. He drew back the bat and smashed Alexander in the face with it before unleashing a sequence of powerful blows that knocked Alexander to his knees.

"Oh jeez," Alexander groaned between blows. "Whatever happened to wooden stakes?"

Squall decided to intervene and he swung his gun blade at Dante. Dante however dodged and grabbed Squall by his neck and squeezed before lifting the Commander bodily and staring into his slightly bulging eyes.

"Wait your turn Commander." Dante told him placing a lot of sarcastic emphasis on the last word before tossing him aside. He turned back to Alexander who was just getting to his feet. He aimed the bat at Alexander's ankles and took them from under him. Alexander toppled over and Dante started to lay into him with a will hollering abuse at the top of his lungs.

Squall hopped back to his feet and charged back in, swinging his gun blade at Dante's unprotected back but before it made contact it struck the blade of the Hyperion and gave birth to a shower of sparks as Seifer easily turned it aside. Squall was surprised by the ease of Seifer's deflection, but nowhere as near as surprised that Seifer had actively tried to preserve life.

"Leave the real violence to the demons Squall." He growled as he took up a defensive stance. "I'll keep you entertained."

"I was so hoping you would say something like that." Squall grinned bloodthirstily as he stalked towards Seifer. "Any last words?"

"Just two." Seifer replied, keeping a wary eye on his approaching rival. "Semper Fidelis."

"Bless you." Squall retorted.

"It's Latin you dolt." Seifer explained patiently. "It means "Always Faithful" and I think it's rather apt at this juncture. You're very far from faithful, given that you abandoned your friends, not too mention the woman you claimed to love at the drop of a hat. That was very stupid."

"Oh believe me Rinoa's been nothing but a pain in my ass." Squall said evenly as he moved ever closer to Seifer. "Maybe I can give her your head on a stick as a Valentines present? What say you?"

"My head on a stick?" Seifer snorted. "How original."

"Okay not a stick." Squall relented. "A pike."

"Show me what you got Squall." Seifer replied stonily. "Man up, and follow through on your threats. Then I'll show you what I can really do."

Squall reacted like lighting. His backup knife shot out of his sleeve almost of its own accord and he launched it at Seifer's head. Seifer ducked it easily before charging towards Squall who went to meet him. With an ear splitting crash both gun blades met. They held for a handful of seconds before disengaging. Seifer spun and sliced horizontally across at Squall's knees. Squall jumped over the blade before aiming a blow at Seifer's head at the same time. Seifer however parried the blow quicker than Squall would've believed possible before catching his rival in the chest with a snap kick. Squall was knocked backwards and he laughed as he caught his balance.

"Okay maybe I was kidding myself thinking you'd let yourself go." He nodded approvingly. "I always hoped I'd see you again Seifer. You know, I think the man upstairs put me on this Earth solely to kick your ass every now and then."

"Well stop talking about it and get on with it." Seifer replied.

Squall obliged, charging in and aiming a wide cut at Seifer's neck. Seifer parried it but I doing so he opened himself up. Squall punched in in the chest before bringing his blade around and stabbing at Seifer's chest. Seifer backed up and Squall's blade only sliced a shallow groove in his left pectoral. Seifer retaliated by turning his body and slamming his shoulder into Squall's chest and knocking him backwards. Squall came right back in and aimed a downward thrust, catching Seifer just above the knee. The armour deflected the blow but it provided an adequate distraction for Squall to cast a Thunder spell on his rival. Seifer was blown off his feet and through the air, limb's jerking spasmodically. He hit the ground like a body thrown off a skyscraper.

Alexander had taken a large number of blows with the flaming bat and while he was an ancient vampire with incredibly enhanced durability they did tend to get annoying after a while. Dante raised the bat over his head with both arms and Alexander made his move. He surged to his feet and grabbed Dante's wrists, stopping him dead in mid swing. He relieved Dante of the bat, tossed it aside and grabbed Dante by the throat, lifting him bodily.

"Okay, you've had your fun," He said as if lecturing a small child. "But you know what it's time for now?"

"My fun!" Rinoa yelled as she unleashed her Blaster Edge. It struck Alexander's wrist. While the blow wasn't solid enough to sever his hand it did result in making him drop Dante. The next thing Rinoa did was remove the Odine bracelet and then she cast an Ultima spell on him. Alexander was blasted at least forty feet into the air before he slammed back down again. He let out a torrent of curses as Rinoa moved towards him, murder in her eyes. Dante however stopped her.

"Rinoa," He said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I've got this. You need to get to the surface right now."

"Why?" Rinoa demanded noticing Dante's serious look. "What's happening up there?"

"A bad thing." Dante clarified. "A really bad thing. Seifer and I can handle this. You have to go where you're needed. I can understand how you feel about Alexander, believe me I can, but you can rest assured I will punish him for what he's done."

"Give him hell from me." Rinoa murmured. "Dante, if you figure out a way to bring back Squall…"

"I'll take it." Dante nodded. "Now get out of here and get everyone off this island pronto. Make sure Mika and Quistis make it. I'm trusting you to protect them okay?"

"Okay." Rinoa nodded before turning and spring for the exit. Dante scooped up the baseball bat and regarded Alexander with a grim smile.

"Alone at last."

* * *

At the surface things had gone from bad to catastrophic. Both the SeeD force and Alexander's men were now in full terror struck retreat mode because Ultima Weapon seemed utterly unable to make the distinction. It had rampaged onwards destroying absolutely everything in its path. Irvine and his two helpers had subjected it to a barrage of Javelin missiles with absolutely no result other than provoking it into launching a Flare spell their way that had blasted Irvine off his feet and reduced his comrades to blacked scorch marks. Now Irvine was at the mercy of an ancient and unstoppable monster and a dwindling supply of ammunition. He slammed a fresh magazine into his gun, a PSG-1 sniper rifle and sighted on Ultima Weapon. His finger brushed the trigger and the gun went off. The bullet was just as ineffective as the Javelin's had been but killing Ultima Weapon wasn't the point. The point was to distract it so his friends could escape, by giving his life if it came to that.

"This is my rifle." Irvine murmured before pulling the trigger again. "There are many like it but this one is mine. My rifle is my best friend, it is my life. I must master it as I master my life." He pulled the trigger again, cradling the gun with the same care a mother used for a new born baby. "My rifle, without me, is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will." Irvine fired once more before ejecting the magazine and slapping another into place before cocking his weapon and firing again.

Mika meanwhile was also trying to provide a distraction. He'd discovered that Alexander's men had come with vehicles and he'd hijacked a Land Rover. He dived under it and drove a combat knife into the fuel tank. Then he called Quistis over.

"I think I can distract that thing so we can escape." He explained quickly as he clambered into the driver's seat. "Wait until I'm right next to it and then light the petrol okay?"

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Quistis asked him urgently.

"I'll take it over the alternative." Mika replied as he slammed the door closed and hotwired the engine. "Just give me a few seconds to get clear before you light it."

As Mika drove at high speed straight at Ultima Weapon he looked into the back to see several crates. One had spilled and its contents were all over the floor. They were high explosive M67 hand grenades. Mika rolled his eyes. They did greatly increase the chance of his attack meaning something but they also increased the chance of this course of action backfiring on him. He waited until he was roughly ten meters from Ultima Weapon before he dived out. He hit the ground hard and was instantly up and running. As he ran the trail of petrol ignited and shot towards the car that was now nestled between Ultima Weapon's front legs.

The explosion was immense and a ball of flame mushroomed upwards, engulfing Ultima Weapon in the blink of one flame filled eye. It disappeared utterly and Mika smiled grimly as he turned to observe his handiwork. There was nothing on Earth that could survive an explosion of that magnitude. That was when the flames disappeared utterly, revealing Ultima Weapon who was apparently no worse for wear. Mika's face dropped.

"Oh come on!" The next thing that Mika felt was considerable pain. Ultima Weapon bore him aloft with what he guessed was telekinesis and threw him. Mika's progress was halted by a rebar protruding from the remains of some long collapsed structure. It impaled him through the chest. Mika's last thought before the darkness took him was that it was good thing it wasn't a wooden rebar.

"My rifle and I know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, or the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. We will hit." Irvine intoned as he lined up Ultima Weapon in his sights and pulled the trigger again. "My rifle is human, even as I, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strength, its parts, its accessories, its sights and its barrel. I will keep my rifle clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other. We will..." Irvine was cut off by a single shot. It wasn't his own however. It came from behind him and suddenly he felt a dull ache between his shoulder blades. He rolled over to see one of Alexander's men training an Uzi sub machine gun on him. There was a click that Irvine knew was the click of the safety catch being flipped to fully automatic fire. The muzzle flashed and Irvine howled as pieces of lead ripped into his body.

Riddling Irvine with bullets however was the last act of the man's life however, as Ultima Weapon chose that moment to launch a Holy spell his way. He was blasted into the air and at least a mile out into the ocean. Irvine coughed. There was no coming back from this.

"Before God, I swear this creed." He ground out as his vision began to fade. "My rifle and myself are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life. So be it, until victory is mine and there is no enemy, but peace!" Irvine smiled and then his head lolled and the darkness closed in.

* * *

"What are you making me do this for?" Squall said striding forwards and kicking Seifer in the ribs launching him a further five meters away. "Not that I'm not enjoying myself."

Seifer forced himself to his feet and readied the Hyperion so he could meet Squall on level terms. They both charged head on and met with a crash of steel. Seifer went on the offensive, launching an incredible, superhuman sequence of fast, accurate and powerful blows that would've dismembered anyone else in seconds. Impressive his display may have been, Squall was adequately skilled to defend himself. He parried and deflected every one of Seifer's blows before returning with an equally devastating barrage. They were evenly matched.

The same however could not be said for Dante and Alexander. Dante was angry and while it was a powerful fuel it could only carry Dante so far. Alexander was also angry after Dante had surprised him and he didn't waste any time working the anger off.

Alexander leapt into the air and delivered an aerial spin kick to Dante that nearly decapitated him then and there. As the younger vampire staggered Alexander grabbed him by the back of his throat before slamming him face first into the floor. As Dante went down for the count Alexander picked up the bat and blew the flames out before he snapped the bat in half and then grabbed Dante by the back of his collar and waiting patiently for him to regain consciousness. When he did Alexander smiled before driving the splintered bat into his stomach. He laughed sadistically as Dante growled in pain. Alexander finished off by kicking Dante in the jaw.

"You know I gave you ample warning." He stated. "You chose not to heed. Tell me, what does it actually take to get you to stop giving me grief? I would've thought you'd have grasped what I bad idea it is to continue picking a fight with me after last time."

"It's because of what you did to me that I'm here now." Dante groaned as he wrenched the bat out of his stomach. "Your whole thing of not going for the kill when you can go for the pain may well end up being the death of you. If you leave someone alive there's a chance, however unlikely that they'll come after you."

"Good to know." Alexander replied grimly. "Don't worry Dante. That's a mistake I won't be making again. Any last words?"

"Well given the circumstances I'd say one word in particular strikes me as apt." Dante growled. "Saliva." With that he balled up all the spit he could muster and spat at Alexander getting him in the left eye. Alexander stumbled back clawing at his face and Dante attacked. He knocked Alexander back with a flying double kick to the chest before dropping him with a powerful right cross. Dante's face morphed to its demonic visage and he roared before grabbing Alexander by the scruff of his neck and waistband before hurling him against the wall. He followed up by grabbing Alexander by his lapels and then butting him in the face before he folded the older vampire up with a punch to the guts and bringing an axe kick down on the back of Alexander's head.

"Not as fun when we hit back is it?" Dante mocked before drawing back a fist and aiming it at Alexander's bloodied face.

"It's starting to be." Alexander growled as he effortlessly caught Dante's fist before shoving him backwards.

Squall and Seifer were meanwhile trading blows endlessly and despite the fact they were both bleeding from numerous superficial cuts the duel was rapidly dissolving into a stalemate. If they were waiting for each other to bleed to death they'd be waiting a while. They were both skilled to deflect any killing blows the other launched. Seifer however wasn't about to admit it aloud for fear of tempting fate but this fight had gone on longer than the duels of four years ago in Deling City, Galbadia Garden and Lunatic Pandora. Maybe it was nothing to get excited over or maybe he could pressure Squall into making a fatal mistake. It would be fatal as well, because Rinoa had been kidding herself that Squall could be saved. Seifer knew that this fight would only end one way. One of them would walk away and the other would be carried. This fight was to the death.

"You know something?" Squall barked as he parried a thrust and returned with a beheading blow that Seifer blocked with equal ease. "This is getting boring. Why can't you just be a good boy and die?"

"Squall, do you want to know the secret to winning a fight like this?" Seifer replied. "Less talk more stab."

Seifer backed up and smirked, baiting Squall forwards. Squall charged in with a roar that quickly turned to a howl of pain as Seifer easily deflected his gun blade before spinning his own weapon around and up, severing three of Squall's fingers. Needless to say he dropped his gun blade. Seifer kicked Squall in the ribs knocking him backwards before his back-up knife slid from his sleeve. He launched it and it buried itself hilt deep in Squall's chest, penetrating his heart. For one moment Squall stayed standing, and then his legs gave out. He collapsed onto the floor. After a few seconds his eyes moved to the knife sticking out of his chest.

"Oh." Squall said tonelessly.

* * *

When Rinoa reached the surface the SeeD retreat was in full swing. Zell's team had been moving over the island when the retreat order came through. Zell's leadership qualities had battled his lust for violence, but he had responsibilities. Before he'd made a decision his team had come across Irvine's body. Zell had grabbed the sharpshooter, getting him medical attention uppermost in his mind.

Quistis and Mark were beating a quick retreat when Quistis happened to look up and saw Mika's body impaled on the rebar. She quickly rushed over to him and checked out his wound. The rebar had clearly gone straight through his heart but it was metal, not wood so Mika stood a decent chance of surviving. She looked around at Mark.

"Help me." She ordered as she started to pull Mika off the rebar. He stirred slightly but after a few seconds of muttering unintelligibly he lost consciousness again. Quistis finally pulled him off and handed him to Mark, who hefted the vampire in a fireman's lift and sprinted off towards the water's edge. Quistis looked around again and was about to follow when someone caught her arm.

"Quistis," Rinoa demanded breathlessly. "What's going on? We don't retreat do we?"

"We do when we're hopelessly outmatched." Quistis replied firmly. "Where are Seifer and Swift?"

"I haven't seen Swift." Rinoa said. "Seifer is dealing with Squall and Alexander and we can only hope Swift shows up before they rip him a new one." Rinoa very nearly mentioned Dante's reappearance but now probably wasn't the best time.

"We'll just have to hope he can handle himself." Quistis relented. "Right now we have to get off this island before the nave decide to sink it."

"What is that thing?" Rinoa asked, shooting a bewildered glance at Ultima Weapon who seemed perfectly happy to drop Forbidden Magic on anything he saw moving.

"I have no idea." Quistis admitted. "I've never seen anything like it before. It's reason number one we're pulling out."

"Screw that." Rinoa hurled back resolutely. "Quistis, if you can distract that thing I guess I can give that thing a little something to think about. You wouldn't happen to remember which Guardian Force I can call on would you?"

"How long do you need?" Quistis asked.

"Thirty seconds give or take." Rinoa said. "Just get his attention and try not to get killed in the process."

Ultima Weapon was happily launching every offensive spell going at the retreating SeeD forces when a football rock suddenly bounced off it's shoulder. I whirled around to see Quistis standing behind it, fearlessly uncoiling her chain whip from her waist.

"That's enough." She said ominously. "You want to kill SeeD members? Well why don't you start with the leader? Let's see your teeth." She snapped her whip at the beast.

Before Ultima Weapon could act on the provocation Quistis struck, blasting the beat with her signature Laser Eye technique. An ancient doomsday machine it may have been, nothing could ignore an attack like that coming from a Blue Mage of Quistis' caliber. It bellowed but before it could it was struck by a spray of highly corrosive acid, a powerful blast of water, then a stream of flames that could melt boulders and finally a sequence of powerful electric bolts. Ultima Weapon was finally able to counterattack with an Ultima spell. Quistis was thrown to the ground steam rising from her body. Then slowly she got up and faced the best again, smiling crookedly.

"Cheap shot." She said before a movement on her peripheral vision caught her eye. "What else have you got?"

Ultima Weapon never had a chance to answer because it was at that point something massive dropped towards him with a deafening roar, gouts of flame erupting from its gaping mouth. The enormous Guardian Force Bahamut, also known as the King of Dragon's slammed into Ultima Weapon at Mach 1 and sunk his talons into the monster. He bore him aloft and then threw him through the air, demolishing the central structure of Battleship Island. Bahamut screeched what was probably his equivalent of a war cry at the sky as Ultima Weapon crashed out of the wreckage. Bahamut came to rest atop a rock and he folded his wings before bearing his teeth at Ultima Weapon who responded by charging forwards, swinging his sword. Both monsters came together and this time it was Bahamut who was thrown almost a hundred metres away. Ultima Weapon waved his sword in triumph right before Bahamut came back to the attack. He smashed headlong into Ultima Weapon, knocking him end over end before landing in front of him and slashing him twice with his clawed hands before Ultima Weapon retaliated with a Holy spell. The Guardian Force staggered slightly and Ultima Weapon slashed him across the chest with his sword.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Quistis asked Rinoa who suddenly appeared next to her.

"Whatever this thing is, it was able to interact with us." Rinoa replied. "That means it's mortal, while Bahamut is a Guardian Force. Simply put there's no contest."

Rinoa was proved right almost instantly as Bahamut's chest wound sealed over and he retaliated by slashing wildly at Ultima Weapon's upper body. Quistis found herself unable to tear her eyes from the spectacle before her. Bahamut aimed a clawed kick at Ultima Weapons' lower face but the jaws of that face close around his ankle. Bahamut screeched in pain and attempted to take flight but Ultima Weapon seized one of his wings and dragged him to the ground. Bahamut eventually freed himself and blasted Ultima Weapon with a veritable wave of fire. Ultima Weapon simply shook the blast off and hurled Bahamut into the ocean. At that point Quistis' watch beeped, signaling midnight.

"Rinoa we have to get off this island!" Quistis yelled. "The navies are on their way now!"

"We have to wait!" Rinoa roared back. "Give Seifer, Swift and Bahamut a few more minutes. We're relying on them."

* * *

A mile below the surface Alexander kicked Seifer aside before punching Dante in the face. The he paused and looked up towards the roof with a look of childlike pleasure on his face.

"Here it comes." He murmured. "Here comes the Eternal Breath. Here comes my family."

* * *

"That's not good is it?" Quistis observed.

It was immediately clear to Rinoa what Quistis was referring to. The air was starting to crackle with energy and Ultima Weapon was glowing with a strange unearthly light. As they watched two orbs of energy started to grow from both mouths. Then they coalesced into one and with an explosion that shook Battleship Island to it's very rivets and blew Quistis and Rinoa off their feet yet again a ray of light blasted upwards into the upper atmosphere. It changed colours every few seconds before turning to a deep, dark gold. Quistis looked up and saw that the beam was tearing a hole in the sky and then suddenly thunder crackled and embers started to fall, like some unholy snowstorm. Rinoa and Quistis took refuge under a huge and badly twisted metal plate.

"What the hell is going on?" The Sorceress yelped. "This is not normal."

"I'm glad to see you haven't lost your powers of observation." Quistis said peering up at the hole Ultima Weapon had caved into the heavens. Demonic howls and roars were beginning to emanate from it. Before Quistis could see anymore a distraction presented itself.

With a splash of enormous proportions something large erupted out of the ocean. Bahamut came back to the attack and hit Ultima Weapon from behind, the talons on his feet, hand and wings slashing deep wounds in the beasts hide. Ultima Weapon aimed a sword blow at Bahamut, but he King of Dragons deflected the sword with one of his wings and then catching it, smashed it against the ground. The weapon shattered. Bahamut then seized Ultima Weapon's head with both hands and with a sickening crunching sound ripped it clean off. Quistis wasn't particularly squeamish but even her stomach turned as Bahamut proceeded to rip Ultima Weapon limb from limb. Then Bahamut picked up the head and hurled it at the opening in the sky. It sailed straight into the hole which instantly closed behind it. The rain of fire stopped, Bahamut disappeared and then finally the remains of Ultima Weapon exploded into millions of tiny fragments. Rinoa smiled as she felt Bahamut return to her mind.

"Wow," She observed.

"Tell me about it." Quistis concurred.

* * *

At the bottom of the Deep Sea Research Centre, things were not going Dante and Seifer's way. Squall was done for, that much was clear, even if he hadn't actually died from his wound yet. Alexander however was equal to the task of dealing with Seifer and Dante by himself. He kicked Dante in the guts, knocking him backwards before grabbing Seifer by the neck.

"What is with you people?" He tittered before throwing Seifer against the wall, knocking him spark out. Then he approached Dante who was moving feebly. Alexander kicked Dante over onto his back and then drove his hand into Dante's chest, grabbing his heart. "I'm sorry it has to be this way." He said, a statement at complete odds with the expression of sadistic glee on his face. "Goodbye Dante, it's been fun."

"You don't want to do that brother." Swift said as he casually stepped into the room his eyes on Alexander. If Alexander was shocked by his sudden appearance he hid it well.

"No I really think I do." Alexander replied.

"Your funeral." Swift shrugged before affording Squall (who was lying in a steadily spreading pool of his own blood) a look. "Sorry it had to end this way Squall."

"S…s…sorry I didn't kill you when I had the chance." Squall rasped. The effort was clearly too much for him. He slumped back and his eyes closed. Swift knew they would never open again.

"Okay, fine." Alexander sighed as Swift stopped a few metres away from him. "I'll play. Why do I not want to kill Dante?" He pulled his hand from inside Dante and used a handkerchief from his top pocket to wipe it clean of blood.

"You shouldn't kill Dante because if you do you'll have me to answer to." Swift replied icily. "Given the company I'm keeping at this moment in time, you don't want that."

"What are you talking about?" Alexander sneered before laughing spitefully at his brother. "Lunatic at twelve o' clock."

"I'm talking about these." Swift said before tossing all five Obsidian Urns at Alexander's feet. All the stoppers had been removed and the blood drained from Alexander's face.

"What have you done?" He demanded staring at Swift. Three emotions were present on his face. Disbelief and anger were two, but the most prominent by far was fear.

"What have you done?" Swift replied. "I'm thoroughly sick of you treating this world as your plaything Alexander. We're doing this on my terms now." As he spoke three figures moved into the light. Two were young men, with long dark hair and classic good looks. The other was a stunning beautiful blond woman. All three were facing Alexander and they weren't looking very happy to say the very least.

"Gaston…" Alexander said as the younger man move forwards.

"Long time brother." Gaston replied before dropping Alexander to the floor with a textbook left hook. As Alexander got back to his feet the other man moved forwards.

"Adrian don't." Alexander pleaded before the man drew a stiletto knife and jammed it through Alexander's left palm. Alexander howled in pain and attempted to rush past them. The girl however stopped him by stabbing him in the gut with another knife. Then she shoved him back and Gaston restrained him. Seifer clambered to his feet and pulled Dante up as well.

"Dante Skyle, Seifer Almasy these are my siblings." Swift explained. "Alexander I believe you've already met. This is my brother Adrian, my brother Gaston and my sister Alice." Swift indicated each of them in turn. "You two should leave. This is family business."

**To Be Continued…**

* * *

**Author Commentary: Okay Squinoa fans, you could kill me but then you'll never see what's going to happen next. Believe me, Squall's relationship with Rinoa is going to figure prominently in part two and part three but there will be a great deal of angst getting there. This chapter was a nightmare to write but I hope I fulfilled your expectations. I always had a Seifer and Squall duel in mind as well as Dante beating Alexander to a pulp with a baseball bat. It's quite poetic. I particularly enjoyed the battle between Bahamut and Ultima Weapon/Eden/Eternal Breath. I did briefly contemplate showing Ultima Weapon pull off the actual Eternal Breath from the game but seeing as I have no idea what's happening whenever I use Eden it seemed like impossibility. Let me just say, I do not like Irvine at all, which I suspect is why I pumped him full of lead. You'll have to wait and see if he'll make it. The speech he was making while taking pot shots at Ultima Weapon was a slightly modified version of the "Rifleman's Creed" which is a mantra that every hopeful applicant for the United States Marine Corps must learn in basic training. I will explain everything I can think of in the next "chapter" but as of now, Doomsday Part One is finished. I cannot thank my readers and reviewers enough, especially Bebedora, Bobby Corwen, Dee, Metal4lifex, Tajon and VicRaatlehead83. I would love a review to tell me what you think of the fic as a whole and to fire any questions at me. You guys made this monumental undertaking possible. Thank you, so, so much. Would you believe me if I said I was tearing up. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you…have I made my point yet? No? Oh well. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you…et cetera.**

**~Ally Todd**


	31. Chapter 31

**The Making of Final Fantasy Eight: Doomsday**

**Part 1**

It started after reading the Legacy of the Chimera by Peptuck, an amazing fan fiction I plug to this day. I wanted to write a huge, epic, wide ranging work that would hopefully be worthy to stand along some of the greats. Initially I wrote my first work, the Balamb Chronicles to see if I could do it. There were a few hiccoughs getting it off the ground but I finally managed it so I immediately started writing out notes and within two months I had a dodgy synopsis ready. I then started refining it and once I'd done that I was able to tell that it was far too long for just one fic, so I hacked it apart and decided on a trilogy. It worked for Star Wars didn't it. While we're on it Star Wars was a big influence as was everything from the Lord of the Rings to the Inbetweeners and beyond. So much went into this fic, including my own creative ideas it's not funny and I will endeavour to explain as much as possible. Explaining everything is probably and impossible dream but I'll do my best. Why don't I start at the top with the characters?

**Squall: **I always had the idea of bringing out Squall's darker side. After all he went through in the game I'd be very surprised if he wasn't slightly unhinged wouldn't you? He was the hero of the game though so I owed it to him to make his slide from hero to villain very interesting and long. I think the first indication of his gradually unravelling mental state was during the wake at the end of Chapter One, so I started screwing his mind up from the get go. I laid off a few false trails, especially involving alcohol and his anger at Dante Skyle's reluctance to provide any concrete facts but it was always going to be Alexander who was doing this to him. Squall's journey was based heavily off that of Angel/Angelus in the first two seasons of _Buffy: the Vampire Slayer_ because I've always thought of them as incredibly similar. The actor that brought Angel to life, David Boreanaz voiced Leon in Kingdom Hearts for pities sake! Squall will never be my favourite character in this game but I enjoyed writing him, especially building him up and then tearing him down. I was particularly pleased with how he turned out.

**Rinoa: **Okay I admit it now. I used to _hate _Rinoa. I absolutely loathed the character but then I mellowed towards her and her exalted beau for reasons I'm not going to go into here. In the game, my primary problem with Rinoa was the fact that she tended to get herself into dangerous situations, forcing Squall to do a whole stupidly romantic thing to save her. My main priority with Rinoa in this game was getting her to stand on her own two feet and save herself. I will admit she did end up in pretty considerable danger, but nothing I threw her way compares to what I like to call the "Suicidal Spacewalk Episode". I think the best example for what I was trying to do with Rinoa was during the field exam with the Malboro and for some reason I quite enjoyed Rinoa kicking some pretty serious ass. You go girl. Then there was he steadily evolving Sorceress powers so I eventually decided the characterise her as a sort of cross between Princess Leia and Willow Rosenberg. She's a bad ass when she isn't using magic, but when she does she's the force to reckon with. Rinoa was a great damsel in distress in the game but now she's one of the most powerful forces in the universe. She's damn powerful but hey…power corrupts.

**Quistis: **Quistis was the character I was most worried about as I've never been brilliant at writing her. I actually based her off a girl I knew in high school and I think it went quite well. There are quite a few traps to fall into wen writing her. First, there' people who write her as the absolute angel of righteousness who never makes mistakes. Hello? She's human so she makes mistakes. That episode in the sewers at the end of Disc 1 is a prime example. Secondly people always put Rinoa and Quistis at odds and I can readily understand why, seeing as Quistis did have romantic feeling for Squall. You have to remember however that Quistis and Rinoa went through hell together in the game. It doesn't quite ring true for them to not become friends, or at least be bonded by trauma. I did try and keep Quistis loyal to the game, which is where the gratuitous use of Blue Magic came from but she never had a romance that got off the ground in the game which is where Dante came in. I originally had Quistis ending up in bed with Mika but it obviously didn't end up that way. I particularly enjoyed the Quistis/Dante relationship and I think it was influenced considerably by the Buffy/Spike relationship in _Buffy's _sixth season.

**Selphie: **If there's one character that was woefully underwritten then its Selphie which is a bit weird because she is my favourite female character. That said however I think getting her pregnant (again I know. I did it in the BC as well) was stroke of genius. It lends some realism to on otherwise farfetched plot and in my mind realism is very important. You haven't seen much of Selphie granted but you will see some more of here in the fairly near future and she'll have a lot of action. It's funny to think she was Dante's initial love interest. I can't really say who I based Selphie on because I wrote so little material for her. That's the way it goes sometimes but that's no excuse. If there are any Selphie fans out there who want to castrate me I apologise but there will be more of Selphie. One scene that I did enjoy was when Rinoa and Selphie were gossiping about Dante and Mika in the canteen. I'm not a girl but that strikes me as very plausible if two handsome strangers turned up out of nowhere like that. I know that would happen if two guys like Dante and Mika turned up at my school. In fact it happened in reverse once when two smoking hot girls came to our school. They were the talk of the boys and I still have no idea where I got the courage to as one of them out from. But I digress.

**Zell: **Zell is a very, very easy character to write and he holds a special place in my heart. Back in primary school, a few mates and I tried to make a film of this game. We failed rather miserably because were ten or eleven years old and two of our number very nearly came to blows over the part of Seifer. I was happy to be cast as Zell and I immediately decided his whole world view is; "Let's just charge and if we get killed…cool!" Zell will come into his own very soon but my favourite part from Doomsday part one was Zell and Zack clearing out the whaler. I also enjoyed Zell staring a bar fight on Quistis' birthday because let's face it; he's not very tolerant at the best of times is he? The guy could use some serious anger management classes and I'm fairly sure he suffers from ADHD. Zell was based off a couple of characters from popular culture, mainly Charles Gunn from _Angel _and Tyler Lockwood from _The Vampire Diaries_. They both have short fuses and a tendency to sort out problems with their fists but they are deep down fundamentally decent people and that sums Zell up in my opinion. He's the epitome of the phrase "pugilist with a heart".

**Irvine:** How am I going to justify myself here? I do not like Irvine and I don't think I ever will. His Limit Break is great fun, I'll concede that but he never grew on me. I was originally going to have him behaving rather erratically to distract from Squall's behaviour but obviously it didn't turn out like that. I did have him getting into a fist fight with Zell but they were both drunk and grieving so it's understandable. In my neck of the gloom it's almost expected. I think what sums Irvine up the most is the parallels I drew between him and James Bond. Guns and women _are _his speciality after all. I modelled Irvine somewhat on Roger Moore's 007 and Private Daniel Jackson from _Saving Private Ryan _played by Barry Pepper. I always had the image of him chanting the Rifleman's Creed since I heard it for the first time in _Full Metal Jacket_. I didn't enjoy writing Irvine but I hope I did him justice. He is a character like all the others so I can't just shut him out, much as I would like to.

**Seifer: **It took him a while to turn up but from what I gather he didn't disappoint. I have and will always maintain that he's nowhere near as bad as the game wants us to believe he is. Sure he was under the thrall of a Sorceress but he was also an eighteen year old hormone bomb. Which one screwed him up more, spin the bloody wheel. I based Seifer on the redemption struggle in _Buffy: The Vampire Slayer _not of Angel but of Spike. If you really think about it, there are so many similarities between the Spike/Angel relationship and the Squall/Seifer relationship. It's almost creepy. In his own mind, Seifer still needs redemption, because he has just killed the saviour of the world so part two will really focus on that, as well as some romance in an unexpected place. Seifer is an immensely entertaining character to write and I'll have to stop myself from overdoing it where he's concerned. I believe that Seifer wants, and more importantly needs to be redeemed otherwise it'll just eat away at him. He'll bottle it up and before you know it powerful accidents could happen.

So that's where all the central characters came from. If I was casting a movie I know where I'd go. Tom Welling (Squall), Malese Jow (Rinoa), Candice Accola (Quistis), Ellen Page (Selphie), Alex Pettyfer (Zell) Jake Gylenhaal (Irvine) and Justin Hartley (Seifer). What do you think? However there are other characters to address. Dark, handsome, brooding and occasionally fanged articles that really set this fic apart. Please welcome my OC's.

**Dante: **Where the hell did this guy come from? Dante was comprised of several characters from several different places and they are (deep breath) Trooper Jamie Dow from _Ultimate Force, _Spike from _Buffy, _Damon Salvatore from _The Vampire Diaries, _Animal Mother from _Full Metal Jacket, _Finn Sharkey from _Waterloo Road, _Vancha March from _The Saga of Darren Shan, _Connor Angel in _Angel _and John McClain from the _Die Hard _Series_. _Dante was a character I wrote as I experienced him. He started out as a slight unhinged, grade one, alpha male douchebag but his more caring and tender side came out with the right people, like Quistis for example. I did not know, from day to day where I was going to take him and there's twists galore coming up. If you're a sucker for romance just wait until Quistis finds out he's alive. If you're a sucker for angst, wait a few more chapters until someone else stick their oar in. Dante's got a few hundred issue but they will all come to light in time. Believe me; no one deserves what Alexander did to him.

**Mika: **Mika was always a difficult character for met to pin down. He was an enigma to me so I can't imagine what you guys made of him. I originally had him in a relationship with Quistis but as the Dante/Quistis relationship blossomed it just became impractical so I turned his attentions elsewhere and guess where I landed. Mika and Rinoa's relationship was one of my favourite things to write and I absolutely loved the sexual tension. Of course I'm going to build on it in part two because in all fairness who wouldn't? Well the Squinoa fans do spring to mind and I guess they're going to lynch me pretty soon. Mika is a fundamentally decent guy, but he is still a vampire and I based him heavily off Stefan Salvatore in _The Vampire Diaries _so you'll see that he has a dark side as well, he's just got a better handle on it than his brother. Sooner or later Dante and Mika may well sort out their differences and you can bet your bottom dollar they won't do it through reasoned discussion. Mika's a very interesting character who I am looking forward to developing further.

**The Obsidian Family: **I always said that I'd based Swift on two characters from popular culture and one was the morally ambiguous Lindsey Macdonald from _Angel. _Who is the other though? I guess I can tell you now. If you go back and check it should be fairly obvious that he's based of Elijah Mikaelson from _The Vampire Diaries _all the way down to the backstory. Yes the Obsidian family are based of the Mikaelson's. Swift is based of Elijah, Alexander is based off Klaus, Gaston is based of Kol, Adrian is based off Finn and Alice is based off Rebekah. However, due to fear of lawsuits I will be taking them all in a radically different direction. Some will turn out to be villainous; some will turn out to be good while one in particular will turn out to be a complete nutcase. Place your bets. There will be a couple of VD-esque moments but I do have a plan for them that is very original by anyone's standards. I hope you'll like it. Just in case you're wondering I have no plans to bring in characters based on the parents Mikael and Esther. I have my standards. There is one word I can say I will incorporate into the Obsidian family, each and every one of them. They must have HUMANITY!

**Foxton and Steven: **Foxton was simply conceived as a disposable villain with the interesting little ability of being utterly shielded by death via supernatural means. Look at the guy's track record. First his neck was snapped by Dante, then Alexander ripped his head off and then Mika ripped his heart out. The guys is going to be seriously pissed off when he reappears sand he's so much more than a disposable villain. Steven was that as well but he was also meant to show the lengths evil Squall was prepared to go to in order to remedy his vampire problem. Then I promptly put his head on a stick. That was meant to foreshadow Squall threatening to do the same to Seifer in chapter thirty but now that seems a bit tenuous. I enjoyed Steven and I was sorry to see him go but needs must.

I think that's all you really need to know, at least for now. No one's sent me any questions about the fic, so if I get any I'll simply reply to them by PM. I am going to take a break before starting part two of Doomsday, maybe a month or so but that's because I'm not sure my mind could take the strain of going straight into it. Be patient and I'll make sure you're not disappointed. If you really want to read something else I advise these.

Life Less Ordinary by Leonsgriever29

Bleed It Out by Freyjadour

The Set-Up, Leather Black Diary and Amber Lights by Niqsta

The Gunblade Saga and Legacy of the Chimera by Peptuck

Dryer Repairs and A Friendly Little Game by Bebedora

Final Fantasy-New Saga (8) by Tajon

The Balamb Chronicles by Ally Todd (what I can't plug my own stuff).

Until next time…

~Ally Todd

6th February 2013


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